Pericoloso Famiglia
by AkaHimitsu
Summary: A new family has arrived...the Pericoloso Famiglia! So what happens when a group of inexperienced teenagers come together and become a mafia family? Who knows?
1. A

****A.N.- This story is dedicated to my friends. Yes, I dedicated this to all you crazy people.****

********_Disclaimer:_ I don't own KHR (sadly) ,********

*****Some characters are based on real life people. I have recieved permission from each person ^^****

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><p><strong>Tokyo, Japan<strong>

The city lights of Tokyo, Japan were bright in contrast to the dark night. At the Tokyo airport, a figure in black walked out of the airport, and got into a black vehicle that pulled up to the curb. When the passenger got in and closed the door with a _click_, the vehicle drove away.

Inside the black vehicle, two people were seated. The windows were all tinted, and the night shadowed the passenger's face.

"Sir," said the driver, "it is a pleasure for me to accompany you to your designated location."

"I'm flattered," the figure in black nonchalantly answered, then after a few moments asked, "What is your name?"

"My name is Robert, sir," the driver answered in response to the question.

"Well Robert-san, thank you for being my driver," the passenger said, "Also if you'd like, you may drop the formality. It's a bit…awkward."

"Uh yes—" The driver, Robert started, but then stopped mid-sentence as he realized that he didn't know his passenger's name.

"You can call me 'A'" 'A' said with a touch of amusement.

"Uh yes, A-san," replied the driver uncertainly.

The black vehicle continued to drive out of the city for an hour, until it arrived at the base of an isolated mountain. The scenery around the mountain consisted of trees, rocks, shrubs, grass…and other features that defined a drab environment. 'A' noted this with slight distaste as the vehicle came to a stop. Then getting out of the vehicle, 'A' walked towards the driver's window and paid him. The driver thanked his passenger and then drove away. When the black vehicle was finally out of sight, 'A' took out a cell phone and dialed a number.

"Hello?" said a person on the other side of the line.

"This is 'A'" said 'A'.

"Ah _A-san_, have you arrived at your designated location?"

"Yeah."

"Good. I hope that your ride there was ok~ Oh, now that I think about it, it must be your first time coming to this part of Japan. So how—"

'A' interrupted the person on the other side of the line an impatient sound and said, "If you don't mind, can you just give me the coordinates to the residence/HQ that I need to get to?"

The person on the other side of the line chuckled. "Of course _A-san_," said the voice. The voice on the other side of the line then gave out the coordinates to 'A' in a bemused voice.

'A' took out a device and typed in the coordinates. "Ok I got it."

"Well then, get to the residence/HQ quickly and set things up there. You're two technicians should be there, so getting things ready shouldn't be too hard~" said the voice on the other line. "Oh by the way _A-san_, may I point out that your choice of an undercover name is hilarious? I mean really, _A_?"

"Che," 'A' muttered.

Laughing, the voice on the other side of the line quickly hung up.

"Hmph," 'A' muttered, "what a jerk. Acting undercover with a concealed name, dressing up this way, and playing my part are tiring and hard enough…there was no need to comment that way." 'A' then walked up the mountain to get to the residence/HQ. After thirty minutes of walking, 'A' arrived at the residence/HQ and stopped before it. _Impressive_ 'A' thought as a four-story mansion stood just a few paces away. Walking around the mansion's perimeter, 'A' inspected the mansion and the area around it. Satisfied, 'A' went back at the entrance, and murmured, "Not a bad place…well hidden too." Then, pushing open the grand double doors, 'A' entered the mansion. _It's time to gather my guardians…_

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><p><em><strong>One week later…<strong>_

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><p><strong>(America) Flushing, New York<strong>

A bus stopped on Main Street at around two in the afternoon on a sunny Saturday. As the door swung open, people came streaming out of the bus; among them, two teenage girls. One girl, who was taller than the other, had long black hair that curled elegantly from the shoulders down. Her eyes were dark brown, almost black, while her skin was slightly pale with a touch of peach. She wore dark blue skinny jeans and a white V-neck sweater. On her feet were silver flats and around her neck was a black and white checkered scarf. In her hand, the girl held a pink parasol with white laces on the edges. Currently, she lifted the parasol and opened it. The girl next to her, seeing that her friend had opened her parasol, rolled her eyes and said, "Close your umbrella Esa, it's not raining."

"It's a parasol," said the taller girl, Esa.

"Same difference," said the shorter girl. Then still walking, she turned to her friend and said, "But really, close the umbrella. You look ridiculous with it opened on a sunny day."

The girl with the parasol, Esa, shrugged, but closed her parasol. "So Jasmine, are we walking the whole way home or are we taking the taxi?"

The shorter girl, Jasmine, stuck an ear bud into her ear and answered, "Taxi." Jasmine was a short-average sized girl. She had straight medium-length hair that reached to her shoulder. Along the sides of her hair, she had strips of dark blue highlights. Just like her friend Esa, Jasmine had dark brown eyes, but her skin had a bit more color to it. Jasmine wore a white, slightly ruffled skirt on top of her black leggings. On her feet were caramel colored UGGS and around her wrists were some bracelets. Jasmine wore a navy blue vest that had fur on the hood, and under it, she wore a long sleeve shirt. On the outside, these two girls looked like ordinary city girls that anyone would see on the streets of Flushing, but their lives weren't as ordinary as one would expect.

After a ten minute walk and a forty five minute taxi ride, the two girls arrived at Jasmine's house. Jasmine and Esa walked up the steps to Jasmine's house and entered.

"Mom, I'm home!" Jasmine called out, "Esa's here too, so we're gonna be in my room." The two girls began to walk towards Jasmine's room when Jasmine's mother stopped them and said, "Girls, can you two go to the living room and take a seat? Your father and I—Esa's parents included—want to speak with you."

Jasmine and Esa exchanged puzzled glances and Jasmine answered, "Uh, sure…" Changing directions, Esa and Jasmine walked over to the living room couch and sat down. While they were seated on the couch, Esa turned to Jasmine. "Hey, why the heck are my parents here?" Esa asked in a low voice.

"How am _I_ supposed to know?" whispered Jasmine, "It's not like I expected them to come." Taking a moment to think, Jasmine pondered the possible reasons why Esa's parents, as well as her own, would want to come and speak with them both. _Wait a moment…_ Suddenly, a look of horror came upon Jasmine's face. Jamine looked Esa in the eye and said, "Do you think any of this has to do with the incident that we caused at school today?"

Considering the possibility for a moment, but deciding that it wasn't the case, Esa replied no.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm pretty sure…I mean, I got that guy to quit spouting nonsense about us carrying around lethal weapons, so there shouldn't be any problem," Esa murmured back.

Jasmine lifted an eyebrow. "You mean about _you_ carrying around lethal weapons. I had nothing to do with it."

Esa just shrugged and waved off jasmine's comment. "Whatever, scissors aren't lethal weapons anyways."

"They are when you open and close them, swing them around, and threaten other people with them," Jasmine pointed out dryly.

Esa snorted. "First of all, those were _safety_ scissors, and second, the people I threaten were threatened due to their actions, so they totally deserved it."

Jasmine gave Esa a look. "Ok, let me just point out that basically _anything_ can be a lethal weapon, and that threatening fellow classmates with scissors go against school policies."

"Well—" Esa stopped mid-sentence as all four parents entered the living room area. The four adults walked over and sat on the couches across from where the two girls sat.

"Good afternoon girls," began Esa's father, "How was your day?"

"It was good dad," Esa said with a smile.

"Good," repeated Jasmine.

"Did anything interesting happen in school today?"

Jasmine and Esa exchanged glances. _Oh no. This is where we get in trouble. He totally knows what went on in school and he's slowly breaking it to us._ Jasmine thought nervously.

"Not really dad," Esa answered with an obviously fake smile. "School was just boring as usual~"

"Well that's good. It seems like your behavior in school is slowly improving. I'm proud of you Esa, and of course you too Jasmine, but then again you never get into trouble."

_Problem successfully avoided._ Esa breathed out in relief, and saw that Jasmine did the same. _Wait._ Esa frowned. _Then why are my parents here? What could they possibly want to talk about…_

"Well let's get to the main reason for this meeting." Jasmine's father sat up straight in his chair and took out an envelope. "The main reason we gathered you girls here was to talk about the letter we got in the mail from a mafia boss." Jasmine's father then passed the envelope to Esa's father.

Esa and Jasmine both blinked and unintelligently said, "Huh?"

Jasmine's father sighed and said, "You two have been selected to be the guardians of a new mafia boss. Consider this a great honor."

As the realization slapped the two girls out of their stupor, they both smiled at each other in excitement. "Cool, so where's this boss dude?" Esa asked.

"Well, from the letter, this boss seems to be at…" Esa's father took a moment to scan the letter. "…Tokyo, Japan." Esa's father looked up at them and held their gaze. "I'm guessing that if you accept the role of becoming this boss' guardian, then you'll have to go to Tokyo, Japan."

Jasmine's jaw hung open, and Esa had a look of disbelief on her face. "So what you're saying is that if we accept this…invitation, we have to go halfway across the world to _Japan_." Esa looked at her father.

"Yes, but only if you accept of course." From the look on her father's face, _if_ didn't seem like an option.

"But um…we don't really speak Japanese that well…" said Jasmine.

Jasmine's father just waved his hand and said, "You two have both been taught several languages at a young age, one of them being Japanese…though it's not your most fluent language, you girls should be fine."

_Ah, yes, the beautiful foreign language learning days…I remember trying to escape from those lessons when I was little_ Esa thought wryly. Jasmine seemed to have remembered those days too, since she grimaced.

"There, you'll go to school, learn how to fight, learn how to use weapons, learn how to use new technologies, and etc…"

Intrigued by what they've heard, both girls agreed to be the guardians for their new boss in Tokyo.

"Good," Jasmine's father said with a nod, "pack your bags tonight girls, tomorrow you're going to Tokyo."

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><p><strong>Seoul, Korea<strong>

A girl was sitting at a table alone, in a café. In front of her, was a slice of chocolate cake with a strawberry on top, along with a hot cocoa. The girl's table was by a window, and outside it was raining. As she was staring out the window, the girl absent-mindedly stirred her hot cocoa. After a few moments though, she took out her cell phone called her father.

"Hello?" said the girl's father.

"Hey dad, are you here yet?"

"Not yet. There's a bit of traffic on the road because of the rain, but I should be there around…4:20pm."

"What! I have to wait for fifteen minutes!? I've been here since 3:50pm!"

"I know, I know Crystal. I'll get there as soon as possible."

The girl, Crystal, sighed in disappointment. "'kay dad."

"Then see you in a bit honey~"

"Yeah...bye." After the line disconnected, Crystal shut her cell phone and sighed. Crystal had nothing to do. She took out her iPod to stifle her boredom, and pass the time by listening to music. As Crystal listened to the music, she ate her cake and sipped her hot cocoa. This girl, Crystal, was an average 13 year old girl. She was sort of tall and had fair skin. Crystal's hair was cut stylishly short (up to her neck) and she had faded red highlights which were now amber. Crystal wore black skinny jeans, a bright yellow t-shirt, and a black sweater. On her feet were red Converse sneakers, and around her neck was a silver star necklace. As the next song came on her iPod, Crystal glanced at the clock. **4:15pm.** _Ugh. Could time move any slower?_ Crystal thought. She stuffed her hands into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. Just as she was about to call her dad again, her iPod notified that she had an unopened e-mail. Crystal put her phone back into her pocket and went to check her e-mail. The message read:

**TO: BrightCrystal2****2**

**FROM: Restricted**

**SUBJECT: !**

** Hello Crystal! This is from a mafia organization in Japan. We would like to congratulate you—**

Crystal logged out of her e-mail without finishing the message. _Probably just some kind of scam. _Crystal thought, rolling her eyes._ If that was from the real mafia, an official letter would be sent or my parents would tell me…After all, my mom is a secretary for one of the buildings owned by the mafia, and my dad is the technician for that same organization…_ As one could not tell from appearances alone, Crystal's family had ties to the mafia organization. Crystal, having to have finished her snack, threw out the she got back to her table, she noticed that her father's car was waiting by the curb. Crystal quickly grabbed her belongings and ran out the café. Outside, the air was frosty cold and the rain poured down from the sky. As Crystal ran, her sneakers hit some puddles, causing a splash. After dashing through the rain, Crystal got to father's warm car. Inside, she shook the cold, rainy water out of her hair and greeted her dad.

"Hey Crystal-honey, sorry for coming so late," said Crystal's father.

"It's fine," Crystal replied, while putting on her seat belt.

About to pull away from the curb, Crystal's father put the car into drive, but then changed his mind and parked it once more. Crystal's father instead took out a special document that he received at work that was 'specifically for him'. As he took out the document and read over it, his eyes widened. A mixture of shock and disbelief filled his expression. To make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him, Crystal's father read over the document multiple times. By the time Crystal's father finished reading it for the fourth time, Crystal noticed her father's odd expression.

"What's wrong dad?" Crystal inquired curiously.

Crystal's father just handed her the document and said, "Read it." Puzzled, Crystal took the documents from her father and read through it. _Omg what the… _Crystal looked up at her dad for some answers, and he nodded to confirm that what she read was real. _Holy shit! I'm gonna be a guardian for a family in Japan?!_

Crystal's father nervously looked at his daughter and asked, "Are you ok with this honey?"

"Yeah, I guess," Crystal said in a slight daze, "I've always wanted to go to Japan anyways…"

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><p><strong>So how was it? Hm, I tried to put that derp feeling for this 'A' like Reborn did in the first episode of KHR...but...hm idk XD Review please~!<strong>


	2. Recruitment

**A.N.-**** Next chapter is here~!**

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR. Not mine.**

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><p><strong>Mito, Japan<strong>

Rai Sato was walking home from his tutor's place on a Sunday afternoon. He was a lean built, teenager who had green-tipped maroon hair. From appearances alone, one would be able to easily tell that Rai was an athletic teenager; a cute one too. From his lopsided grin to his lax demeanor, Rai was obviously good-looking. What people couldn't tell from appearances though was the somewhat mischievous and flirtatious part of his personality._ Sheesh, what a mean tutor!_ Rai thought as he walked down the street. _Just because I complimented her outfit, said that her skirt was nice and said that she looked cute in it, she slaps me! Do girls these days have something against guys checking them out and complimenting them?_ Bringing his hand up to his left cheek, Rai gingerly touched it and winced. _I better put some ice on it when I get home_… Rounding the corner, Rai got onto his block, passed three houses, and arrived at his home. Opening the gate to his residence, Rai walked up the steps and went in.

"I'm home!" Rai called out.

An old woman stepped out of a room and replied, "Rai, I see you're back."

"Yeah, I just got back from my tutor's home grandma," Rai said with a grin. Rai then excused himself and went into the kitchen to grab a bag of ice. As he walked out of the kitchen to the living room, he gingerly pressed the bag of ice to his cheek.

"Rai, did something happen today?" asked his grandma. "You're cheek is very red, and you're even putting ice on it."

"Ah…no," Rai replied, thinking back to the slap his tutor gave him.

"Well Rai," said his grandma, "go check the mail pile. I saw one letter with your name on it."

Rai, curious, walked over to the mail pile and rummaged through it. _Huh, I usually don't get mail…maybe it's from my parents?_ At the end of the pile was a letter addressed to him. The letter was official looking and was sealed tightly. _I wonder what this is…_ Rai quickly opened the letter and read through it. The letter first started off with a 'Congratulations!', and something to do with being accepted as a guardian of a mafia family. Then the letter went on explaining the mafia and its families. The person who sent this letter wrote that he should go to Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday with all his belongings. Along with that request, came a back up story of being accepted into a high-class school in Tokyo. There was a pamphlet about that school and a schedule. The letter stated that this story would be for his friends and family. By the time Rai had finished reading, he was dazed. _This is…amazing, but I'm not sure what's going on. Seems like the mafia want me for some reason…sounds dangerous…_ Rai broke into a grin. _But it sounds interesting too…maybe I should go along with it and see what comes from it._ After thinking about the decision he was going to make, Rai decided to go for it and told the backup story to his grandma. _I must be crazy…_ he thought, after explaining the pamphlet to his grandma. "I'll start packing grandma," Rai suddenly said.

"Isn't this a bit too sudden?" Rai's grandma questioned worriedly. "I mean it's wonderful that you got accepted to such a nice school, but—"

"Don't worry grandma," Rai quickly interjected. "Tokyo isn't too far from Mito. I'll call you often and visit you time to time."

"I don't know Rai, but if you really wish to go to this school then I'll allow you to…"

"Thanks grandma!" Rai said, giving her his best smile.

Rai's grandma smiled kindly back. "Remember Rai, when you get to that school, don't forget to give a good impression on your teachers."

"Hai!" Rai said and mischievously thought _This should be fun._

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><p><strong>London, England<strong>

In the cover of darkness, two people went running down the streets of London. One of the two was much taller than the other. As the two figures neared a lamp post, their features became identifiable. The taller one was a boy who looked about fifteen, with raven black hair that was neatly tousled. His face was mostly covered by the purple tinted goggles and a purple scarf. The person next to the taller guy was another boy. This boy looked around the age of eleven and had light pink hair that was slightly messy.

"Big brother," the smaller boy said in a monotone voice, "do you think we'll get to the orphanage in time? We've been gone for a long while, and the adults may have noticed."

The older boy turned to his younger brother and said calmly, "I don't know Ryo. We just passed my high-school, so we shouldn't be too far." The boy scanned his surroundings and turned to his younger brother, Ryo, once more. "Hmph, just about five more blocks to the orphanage from what I can see."

"I guess we don't have to hurry too much then big brother Darke," Ryo said looking blankly up at the night sky. "I don't like it there much anyways."

"Hn." Darke coolly cocked his head to one side and leaned on the lamp post next to him.

"Big brother Darke, you don't like it there much either, do you?"

"I don't," Darke answered, then suddenly stiffened. Coming closer were the sound of footsteps. Darke tried to quickly usher Ryo to an ally, but it was too late. The steps stopped as the group of people noticed the two boys. These footsteps belonged to four people from a local gang.

In seeing the two boys, one gang member (We'll call him GM #1) drawled, "Hey kids, what are you doing up so early?"

Darke shifted into a defensive stance and smoothly answered, "We're just taking an early morning jog."

The guy (We'll call him GM #2) closest to Darke drunkenly laughed and said, "At 3am? What a load of bullshit." The rest of the gang laughed along.

Ryo frowned, and Darke, with some hardness in his voice, said, "Well, we'll be leaving," and pulled Ryo away. "Incompetent jerks…" Ryo muttered under his breath.

In the midst of the laughter, one of the members heard Ryo's comment and stopped laughing. "Hey what did you say punk?" the guy yelled.

Ryo bluntly answered in a monotone voice, "I said you guys were incompetent jerks."

Darke knew this would rile up the four guys, but didn't care much. His brother wasn't wrong in calling them incompetent, and Darke wasn't in the mood to talk it out. _A pest is blocking my way _Darke thought. _How annoying. I could've gotten back to the orphanage by now if it weren't for these fools._

The gang members snarled at this insult and snickered. The brawny guy (We'll call him GM #3) growled, "Pretty boy (Ryo), you better take back your insult—no wait, I've already decided that I'm going to mess up that face of yours. By the time I'm finished with you, no one will want to look at your face ever again because of its ugliness."

Ryo blankly stared and retorted, "Don't worry, my face will never be as ugly as yours. If it weren't for the darkness and the three extra people blocking my view, I think I would've already puked from _your_ ugly face."

"Why you…" the brawny one snarled. The rest of the gang members nodded at each other and ran at Darke and Ryo. "We'll teach you brats a lesson," GM #4 shouted.

Darke was prepared for this. He made eye contact with Ryo and proceeded with an attack. The first guy came at Darke with his fists curled. Darke lithely dodged the punch and tripped him. As the person fell, Darke kneed him in the stomach and elbowed him on the neck. When the unfortunate victim was on the ground, Darke neatly knocked him unconscious. The remaining three, seeing that their comrade was easily knocked out, attacked together in hopes to overpower Darke with number. Darke met these attacks with the same intensity, but was slightly strained. Just incase he was overpowered, Darke lit up the edges of his scarf with a mysterious purple flame. "Now!" Darke said to Ryo. Ryo, hidden from his illusion, heard Darke and did his part. Ryo created an illusion that 'chained' the targets down. The gang members were in shock as they saw this happen, and attempted to escape. "Hey what's going on?" "That's kid just suddenly appeared!" and "They're some sort of freaks!" were the shouts of the four people. In their stupor, Darke knocked them all out swiftly, and put on the purple flames from his purple scarf. When all the members were out cold, Ryo stopped his illusion. Darke nudged the unconscious bodies with his foot distastefully and turned towards Ryo, who was breathing heavily. "Let's go Ry—" started Darke, but stopped as another person, a man, approached. When the man got close, he stopped walking and said, "Nicely done." Darke coldly stared at the man bracing himself. The man lifted his hands to show that he meant no harm and said, "I'm just here to give you a package." The man tossed a package at Darke, who caught it, and walked away, disappearing.

Ryo, slightly curious, said, "Open it."

Darke peeled open the package and looked at its contents. _An envelope and a letter…_ Darke thought in a mixture of caution and confusion. Ryo stood on his toes to see what was inside. Darke pulled out the letter from the package and opened it up. The letter started off with 'congratulation' in being accepted as a guardian for a mafia family in Japan. Then it went on explaining the whole concept of being a guardian and the history of the mafia. Also, the letter stated that he was to go to the airport tomorrow with all his belongings. The letter assured an excuse for him as well. It said that tomorrow, the "authorities", who are actually people who worked for the mafia, will come to the orphanage and excuse him… Darke frowned in suspicion after finishing the letter. Ryo, who had read along, finished reading the letter as well. Turning to his older brother, Ryo said, "Let's do it big brother. We both hate the orphanage anyways, so why not?"

Darke just looked at his brother, then back at the letter. Then, Darke took out the envelope in the package. Opening up, he saw two plane tickets, first class.

"Cool!" Ryo exclaimed, looking at the tickets. "We're going right?"

Darke looked at his brother's excited expression, sighed, and nodded. It wasn't often that Ryo showed any emotion. Ryo smiled while Darke remained silent. Darke looked up at the sky and saw it starting to lighten. "Let's go Ryo," Darke said, and turned to walk towards the orphanage.

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><p><strong>(Canada) Toronto, Ontario<strong>

Selina was on her computer, going through _Facebook_ on a Saturday morning. Swiveling on her swivel chair and swinging her feet, Selina rapidly typed on her keyboard. On the computer screen, many chat boxes were opened up (it was the best way to talking to her friends). Selina had many friends on _Facebook_ from many different places, the main reason being, because she had moved so many times in her life. Selina's mom worked as a translator, while Selina's dad worked for a large, worldwide company, so Selina was used to moving. Selina was a shorter-than-average-sized 14 year old girl who had brown-dyed hair and dark brown eyes. Currently, Selina was wearing her pajamas along with a pair of bunny slippers. After chatting and doing everything she wanted to do on _Facebook_, Selina went onto her e-mail. In her inbox there was one new e-mail. Selina clicked on it, and it opened up.

**TO: Starlight14**

**FROM: Restricted**

**SUBJECT: Greetings**

**Hello Selina. This is a private, irretraceable message from the Japanese Mafia.**

Selina raised an eyebrow at the strange introduction and kept reading.

**You have been chosen to become one of the guardians for a new mafia family. Please pack your belongings and arrive at the Tokyo airport by this Tuesday. If you do not believe this message, perhaps this document of you will convince you.**

Selina opened the linked document that came along with this message to "convince" her. The document listed her full name, age, where she lived, what school she went to, her profile, and more… _Creeper_ Selina thought, then continued reading. Scrolling through her history and grades at school, Selina verified this to be all true. At one point while looking through her history, Selina froze in shock at one sentence.

**Selina is an illusionist who has…**

Just by reading that one line, Selina believed in the authenticity of the letter. Someone knew about the strange ability that she somehow acquired, and was personally looking for her. Selina's jaw dropped open and only one thing ran through her mind. _How do they know…_Still thinking, Selina came across another important thought. _How do they expect me to get to Tokyo, Japan anyways?_ Selina frowned. _Not that I'm crazy enough to actually follow these instructions…_ After reading the next few sentences, Selina muttered, "Oh."

**So that you may arrive in Tokyo, Japan in time, we will send a proper 'letter' to you. The mafia controls some parts of the government, and can arrange this smoothly. We will send your father a notice from his company stating a promotion for him in Japan. This letter should arrive on Saturday—**

Selina kept reading till the end. When Selina finished reading the mesage, she mused at how well it was written out. _If this…If I were to actually go along with this…it would be interesting…_ The information contained in the message was astounding too. Selina found the details of this arrangement intriguing, and found the history of the mafia fascinating. In the middle of her musing, Selina's mother called to her, saying, "Selina honey, come downstairs and look at this!" Selina snapped out of her musing and replied, "Okay mom, coming~" She got off her chair, walked out of her room, and went downstairs. In the kitchen, Selina's parents were gathered around a thick package. When Selina's mother noticed Selina approaching, she said, "Honey, your father got a job promotion, isn't it wonderful!"

Selina smiled and said, "Great!" _It seems that the message kept its timing correct…_

Selina's mom went on an enthusiastic ramble about the promotion to Tokyo, Japan, free airplane tickets, a great school, living in great accommodations, how would have a whole dorm to herself for the new prep school she would be attending… Selina nodded and played along although she knew all this already and more. _This is really happening…_

By the end of this, Selina's parents went frantically packing at an abnormal speed, and made plans to tell the landlord that they would be moving to Japan in two days. Selina went upstairs and started her packing too. While she packed, an amusing thought crept into her head. _What exactly will I be doing as a guardian for a sketchy organization such as the mafia? _Selina shook her head. _Why am I so intrigued by this offer? The mafia could be a really bad group and it could be dangerous… _ But Selina knew the answer to that. She never encountered a single soul who knew about her abilities. Knowing she couldn't tell this to an adult (for they may think that she'd gone crazy, or even worse, dissect her to see what was with her), Selina knew this was the only source she could rely on for more information.

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading the chapter guys~! ~('o'~)<strong>


	3. Here we are in Japan

**A.N.-**** Hey there fans, just wanna say, next chapter is here XD **

_**Disclaimer:**_** I don't own KHR. I do try really hard to steal it though ovo**

*****Special Thanks to novellanite12 for being the first person I didn't know to review! Thank you!****

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><p><strong>Tokyo, Japan<strong>

'A' was sitting in the kitchen of the four-story mansion with a glass of milk, toast, and a document on the table. As 'A' looked through the documents and then out the window, 'A' took a sip of milk and thought _my guardians should be arriving today around noon…_ Taking out a book, 'A' waited.

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><p><em><strong>Around noon…<strong>_

Esa and Jasmine were sitting in a café waiting for the "right person" (as the letter stated) to come and find them. Before Esa and Jasmine left New York, their parents had given them the letter along with some hugs, kisses, money… Well anyways, the letter told them to stay and wait at _this_ specific café until a person came to pick them up. _Damn you letter for making me have to wait for the "right person". It's already been fifteen minutes. FIFTEEN!_ Esa thought sourly. Next to her, Jasmine was resting her head on her arms. She looked like she was about to pass out in exhaustion and at the same time, had an impatient look on her face. If it weren't for the people around in the café, Esa was sure that Jasmine would bang her head against the table. Repeatedly.

"Is that "specific person" here yet?" Jasmine muttered in a tired voice.

"I don't think so," Esa replied, also tiredly.

Just then, a girl sitting behind Esa and Jasmine dropped her iPod as well as some napkins. The iPod clattered onto the floor and the napkins fluttered away in many directions. This drew Esa's attention towards the girl. Politely, Esa picked the napkins up and handed it to the girl behind her. The girl said a quick "Thanks" and turned away. Esa turned away as well and rested her head on the table. _When's this guy gonna come?_ Esa thought, and then turned to Jasmine and asked, "You want me to get you something that'll help you wake up?"

Jasmine merely nodded in response.

Esa got up and walked over to the café line. When it was her turn to order, Esa bought two hot cocoas and two energy drinks. Turning away with the drinks in her hand, Esa started to walk back to her table when all of a sudden; a guy with maroon hair and green highlighted tips came running and almost smacked into Esa. Though Esa was very tired, she still managed to dodge the running guy with a quick side-step. Glaring, Esa muttered "Watch it," and turned away.

The guy, looking slightly flustered, blurted out, "Sorry!" and started to walk away. As he walked away, he seemed to have remembered something, and approached Esa again. "Hey, by any chance, are you familiar with this city?"

"No. I'm from America," Esa answered bluntly.

"Oh, ok." The guy frowned for a moment, but smiled once more as he turned toward Esa. "Thanks anyways cutie~" The maroon haired boy then put an arm on Esa's shoulder and said, "Well I have time to kill before I get picked up. Let's talk or something. Here I'll start: What's your name?"

Esa bristled at the invasion of personal space and angrily shrugged the stranger boy's arm off her shoulder. "Get off of me and go away," Esa said between her teeth, almost crushing the hot cocoa cups. Esa was tired from the plane ride, and too exhausted to stay patient and polite to the boy, so she quickly turned away and walked off. _Who does he think he is? Doesn't he know something called manners and personal space!_ As Esa stomped off, the maroon haired boy stood sheepishly with a lopsided grin on his face. Shrugging and giving Esa a backwards glance, he walked to a table and sat. Continuing to walk back to her table, Esa huffed and sat down. She handed Jasmine a hot cocoa and took one herself. Sipping their hot cocoas, Esa and Jasmine waited.

After five minutes of waiting, a green haired guy entered the café. First he walked over to the maroon haired guy with the green tips and whispered something. That boy nodded and followed behind the green haired guy. Next, the green haired guy walked over to Esa, Jasmine and the girl behind Esa.

"Hello girls, I'm the specific person that your letter has stated. Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, come with me."

Esa, Jasmine and Crystal stood up and joined the green haired man and the maroon haired boy. Crystal looked around at the people in the group then focused her eyes on the green haired guy. "What's your name?" she asked.

Still walking, the green haired guy slightly turned his head and smiled, saying, "I'm not suppose to tell you anything yet, but you can call me Ace."

Crystal just raised an eyebrow and kept walking. Soon, the group got out of the airport and onto the streets. In front of them, a large black van waited. The green haired guy, Ace, opened the doors of the van for them, and then went to the driver's seat. Esa, Jasmine, and the rest of the people went inside. On the furthest back seat was a brown-haired girl who was already asleep with her head against the window. Esa and Jasmine took the seats next to the sleeping girl. In the seats in front of Esa, Jasmine, and the sleeping girl, there sat a dark haired boy who wore a purple scarf and purple goggles. He sat to the very left by the window. Crystal sat next to the boy with the scarf and the maroon haired boy sat next to her. In the front sat Ace in the driver's seat, and a little pink haired boy in the passenger seat.

"Hey Jasmine," Esa whispered, "Isn't there a possibility that this could be a kidnapping? I mean, look at the vehicle. It's a big, black van with tinted window!"

"Well, if this is a kidnapping, I might as well have a nap before I start screaming and calling for the police," Jasmine replied. She then yawned and went to sleep.

"Meh," Esa muttered. _Might as well…_ And she fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The only people awake now were the driver, the pink haired boy, the dark haired boy with the scarf and goggles, and Crystal. Crystal glanced around at the people around her. "….." An awkward silence hung in the air of the van. Thankfully, Ace started the ignition, which broke the silence, and put the van on drive and drove. The car ride went pretty smoothly….that is, until they hit the highway. Crystal was staring without really seeing at the ceiling when suddenly, she started bouncing. Snapping out of her stupor, Crystal saw, or more like felt, the car going at an abnormal speed. "What the—"Crystal started saying until the van took a swerve and threw her into the dark haired boy's lap. Turning slightly red, but hiding it, Crystal quickly got off of the dark haired boy's lap and glared at the driver. "What the heck!" she said. "Why are you frickin speeding? Can't you see the sign says 60mph, not 90mph!?"<p>

Ace slightly turned his head towards Crystal and replied, "We'll get to our destination faster if we drive like this. 60mph and 90mph are pretty much the same thing to me anyways." Then he turned his full attention back to driving.

Crystal grinded her teeth and said, "Well, if you took driving school and got your license, then you should know to follow the speeding laws!"

Ace shrugged. The pink haired boy next to Ace in the front seat turned and asked in a flat voice, "Do you even have a license Ace?"

"I'm sixteen," Ace answered.

"So you have a license right?" Crystal said, still not comfortable with the high speed driving.

"No."

"WHAT?!" Crystal's eyes widened. "The next thing you know, this van may be stolen!"

"Borrowed is the correct term," Ace corrected.

_I'm in a stolen van stuck with a psycho driver_ Crystal thought, and then looked to see how the people in the back seat were doing. When Crystal turned around, she had a look of disbelief on her face at the peaceful faces of those sleeping in the back row. _There all asleep…HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?!_ Crystal turned towards the dark haired boy to see his reaction to this ride. Indifference. Crystal frowned. _How can that guy be so calm?_ Crystal then glanced at the maroon haired boy sitting next to her. He was clinging onto his seatbelt for dear life. _Normal._ Finally, Crystal looked at the little boy in the front seat. The little pink haired boy displayed no emotion. _What a weird kid…_Crystal thought. She then, somehow, continued to endure the car ride until they arrived at the base of an isolated mountain. When the van finally stopped, Crystal sighed in relief.

"Time to get out guys!" Ace cheerfully called out.

Crystal, who was still on edge, somehow registered those words and unbuckled her seat belt. Next to her, the dark haired stretched out his limbs as if sitting through a high speed car ride was boring, and the little boy sitting in the front seat still displayed no emotion. Turning to the maroon haired boy, Crystal saw that he was still in shock. He looked like a cat that got dropped into ice-cold water and then thrown out of a six-story building window. In the back, the three girls slowly woke up.

"Ah…that refreshed me slightly," Jasmine said while yawning.

"Yeah," Esa agreed.

"Already here?" the brown haired girl mumbled. Rubbing her eyes she asked, "Did I miss anything important?"

"Nah," Ace said nonchalantly.

_You missed a whole lot…_ Crystal thought.

Everyone in the van stood up, and started to exit through the doors on the side. When everyone was out, Ace turned to them and said, "We'll be going to our base/HQ/residence/whatever you want to call it now guys!" Then he turned away and started up the mountain. The rest of the group followed.

"Here," Esa said to Jasmine while handing her an energy drink, "this'll help you wake up fully."

Jasmine nodded thankfully and drank the energy drink. Esa took out her own energy drink and drank it too. The group strode up the mountain and through its forest terrain. Ten minutes later, the group arrived at the base. Everyone, excluding Ace, the dark haired boy, and the pink haired boy, had their jaws hanging open. Standing in front of them was a majestic four-story mansion that was almost the size of a castle.

"Damn. That's one big mansion," Jasmine said. Esa nodded in agreement.

"No use staring at it guys," Ace said, waving his hands, "Let's go in." Pushing open the double doors, Ace and the rest of the group entered.

* * *

><p><strong>Review~ *throw sparkles in the air*<strong>


	4. Meeting

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR ish not miiiine~**

* * *

><p>Taking their first step into the mansion, the scent of home-baked chocolate chip cookies was the first thing that hit the group. The second thing that hit them, or more correctly Esa, was a flying water bottle.<p>

"Ow!" Esa growled as the flying projectile smacked her square in the face. Then muttering under her breath, Esa looked up to see who threw the water bottle at her, and was met with an odd sight. Standing at the top of the staircase was a gray haired girl in glasses who looked very pissed. Sprawled on the stairs was another gray haired girl, or was it a guy?, who also wore glasses. The two people looked identical.

"Whoa guys," Ace said, "calm down. Gray, Gris, if you're going to fight, go do it somewhere else."

The girl at the top, Gray, turned a sharp eye toward Ace and said, "We're not fighting baka. My brother here tripped and fell halfway down the stairs, scattering all our research papers."

"Well, you didn't have to throw a water bottle at me," Esa huffed.

"My condolences," the girl, Gray, frostily replied. Then turning back to Ace, Gray said, "Oi, why are _you_ telling me what to do. You're not even part of this family, and plus, I'm older than you." Steadily walking down the stairs, Gray picked up the scattered papers, grabbed her brother, and stalked away.

"Well then," the brown haired girl said with a raise of an eyebrow.

"Feisty," the maroon haired boy with the green tips commented. "But I've got to say, she _did_ have nice features. A little less sharp and she would've been my type of girl~"

Esa glared at this comment, while Jasmine coughed, Crystal rolled her eyes, the brown haired girl smirked, and Ace laughed.

"Ok guys. Let's go meet your boss." Leading them towards the kitchen, Ace looked around for someone, most likely their boss. "Huh, your boss isn't in here." Looking around Ace said, "Hm, maybe in the living room then." Taking the group back out of the kitchen, Ace brought them into the living room.

* * *

><p>Sitting on one of the couches, back again the group, was 'A' with a book in one hand. 'A', realizing that there were people behind, closed the book, stood up, turned around, and said, "Hey guys, nice to meet you."<p>

* * *

><p>The moment 'A' turned around, Esa's eyes popped out of her socket. She said, "What the heck?!" and Jasmine gasped and said, "Anrya!?"<p>

"Hey," said Anrya nonchalantly. "Long time no see."

Jasmine wasn't sure how to react to this. Feeling confused, Jasmine glanced at Esa to see how she was dealing with this situation. Esa…had an interesting facial expression on. It was a mixture of _WTF_ and an _I-haven't-seen-you-in-a-long-while-but-I'm-not-sur e-if-I-want-to-hug-you-or-smack-you-across-the-fac e-repeatedly-while-strangling-you_ look.

"Hehehe, shocker huh. Well, sit down guys," Anrya said, sitting back down. The group, excluding Ace, took a seat on the available couches. "Ok, before anyone can ask any questions, I'm just gonna give you a little summary on what's going on. Ok…um…I'm the boss, your boss, of this family. My name is Anrya. About a year and a half ago, a random guy just came up to me and placed the position of family boss on me. I still have no idea why, but yeah…So anyways, I needed guardians, so I traveled around to look for some skillful and potential people. And this is how I found you guys." Turning towards Esa and Jasmine, Anrya said, "For one year, I went to your middle school as a seventh grader and hung out with you guys. Then I moved." Turning away from the two girls, Anrya looked at Crystal. "During the summer break of my seventh grade, I went to Korea with another person and found you. I passed by you a couple of times somewhere, but other than that, you didn't notice me." Glancing at the maroon haired boy behind Crystal, Anrya continued, saying, "During that same summer vacation, I came to Japan. One day while walking around the neighborhood, I saw you Rai. I followed you around for some time to see what you were like." Looking away from Rai, Anrya focused her eyes on the brown haired girl. "Selina, I came to your school as an eighth grade transfer student. I've crossed paths with you a couple of times and was surprised when one day, you casted an illusion." Anrya grinned. Facing toward the last unmentioned person in the room, Anrya said, "Darke…" then glanced at the pink haired boy and added, "…and Ryo, I saw you guys… about three months ago in a library. It was interesting to see that you two knew how to use your flames. I was lucky enough one day to see you guys show some interesting teamwork, skills, and abilities…" Anrya trailed off. "Well that's basically what happened so far. Are there any questions, comments, concerns?"

At first, no one said anything as one word floated through the air: _Stalker_

Crystal frowned and said, "Comment. You're a creepy stalker. Who follows random kids around and keeps a picture and a profile of them? I don't think you should be a boss."

Anrya looked at Crystal and said, "True, but I'm not that bad. Those were just necessary for me to pick out good guardians."

Still frowning, Crystal shrugged.

Raising her hand Selina said, "Concern/question. Is this mansion safe?"

"Security wise, pretty much, but with the potential possibility of danger anytime and anywhere, nowhere is 'safe'."

"I have a question," said Jasmine. "Can I trust you?"

"Nope. Anymore questions?"

Rai raised his hand.

"Good, looks like no one has any more questions."

Ace, standing by the doorway, cleared his throat and said, "I think the chocolate chip cookies you were baking are ready in the kitchen."

Anrya quickly got up and went to the kitchen to take out the cookies from the oven. In a few moments, she came back saying, "It'll take a while for the cookies to cool down. In the meanwhile, let me give you a tour of the mansion."

Anrya, Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, Selina, Rai, Darke, and Ryo all got up and the tour began. Anrya briefly showed and explained each floor of the mansion. The first floor had a huge kitchen, living room, a dining area, a rec room, three bathrooms, some spare guest bedrooms, a grand staircase, and a restricted area for the technicians/scientists. The second floor belonged to the girls of the family. All the bedrooms were there, each containing its own bathroom, study rooms, a girls lounge, and a huge closet full of various shampoos, conditioners, body mist, toilet paper, paper towels, lotions, and other things a girl needed were available. The third floor was exactly like the second, except that the third floor was for the boys. Finally, on the top floor, there was a library. It had various books, computers, rooms, study materials, desks, etc.

* * *

><p>After the tour had ended, Anrya brought everyone back down to the living room. "Oh yeah, by the way, a guy that I know wants to give us some kind of physical test thing…I don't know what it is or when it is, but I just wanted to give you guys a heads up. Um, I'm going to be getting the cookies now." Anrya walked out of the living room and went into the kitchen.<p>

Ace, who had not gone along with the group for the tour, asked, "So, how do you guys like this place?" He was answered with some comments like: "I like this place" or "This place is huge" and so on. As Ace opened his mouth to ask another question, a yelp was heard from the kitchen followed by the shattering of glass. Sighing, Ace said, "Wait a moment guys, I'm going to go help Anrya with the broken glass," and walked away.

After five minutes passed, Ace and Anrya came back from the kitchen. Ace held a tray containing glasses of milk, and Anrya held two plates of home-baked chocolate chip cookies. "Sorry for the delay guys," Anrya said with an embarrassed smile. "Here, have some cookies and milk." She placed the cookies on the table and Ace handed the milk to everyone who wanted one. Everyone took some cookies and/or milk except for Darke and Ryo. Selina paused before taking a bite out of her cookie and glanced over at Darke and Ryo. "Aren't you guys going to have some too?"

Both boys remained silent and did not answer.

"Um, ok then…"

"C'mon, at least have a cookie guys," Anrya said, pushing the plate of cookies towards them. Ryo hesitantly picked up a cookie and nibbled on it without emotion. Darke rejected the offer…kindly or not, it couldn't be told since Darke's scarf and goggle covered two-thirds of his face. It was quiet for a couple of seconds as everyone ate the delicious snack.

"These cookies are delicio—"Crystal started, but then suddenly collapsed. Everyone just stared at the unconscious Crystal in dumbfounded stupor.

"What the—"Selina said, and then she slumped over as well. One by one, everyone began to pass out.

"What's going on…" Jasmine mumbled before her eyes fluttered shut. Everyone began to slip out of consciousness. By now, the only people conscious were Anrya, Darke, and Ace. Darke suspiciously glanced at the cookies and then back at Anrya and Ace. Anrya and Ace calmly stood as if people passing out right and left were their everyday normal. Darke thought over the situation calmly. After a few moments, the pieces clicked together.

"You," Darke said in a deadly calm voice, "you're not—" Darke felt a sharp prick in his neck. His vision began to blur and the surrounding area warped. Falling to his knees, Darke tried to stay conscious but failed. Slumping forward, the last thing Darke saw before hitting the ground was a flash of white.

* * *

><p><strong>*Dramatic music (not)* <strong>


	5. Test

_**Disclaimer: **_**You know what I'm gonna say owo~**

* * *

><p><em>Pitch Black.<em> That's how everything was when Esa woke up. "Ugh," Esa mumbled groggily. Looking around and seeing absolutely nothing, Esa sighed and muttered, "Where am I?...Am I dead?" Esa didn't think she was dead, so she tried pinching herself. "Ow. Yeah, I'm probably not dead… maybe I'm in my sub-consciousness. At least I'm safe here."

_Silence_

"…Uh, hi," said a voice from not too far away.

"Oh wonderful," Esa said wryly, "someone has invaded my peace."

"Aw, that's mean Esa-chan. It's not like I'm _that_ bad," said the voice which Esa recognized to be the perverted, maroon haired boy Rai's. Ever since meeting him at the airport café, Esa labeled him as the pervert that she believed he was in her head.

_True. The situation wasn't that bad till you came in. You made it from bad to worse._ Esa thought. _I'm stuck in a pitch black place with a perverted weirdo…many things can go wrong here…_ A sudden, disturbing thought entered her mind. _ Oh shit…DELETE DELETE DELETE…_ After a few moments of trying to delete an image, Esa asked to no one in particular, "Where are we and how do we get out?"

"Hmm…" Rai said, thinking about a way to answer the rhetorical question, "Maybe we were kidnapped or something. If we want to escape, maybe we have to break a window…or maybe break down the door, or maybe we have to crawl through the air shafts like in those spy movies…" Rai went on talking. Sighing, Esa listened half-heartedly as she started to feel the walls for something such as an exit. At last, after feeling around the walls for a while, Esa felt a light switch and flicked it on. The room brightened.

"Ah! My eyes!" Rai exclaimed, rapidly blinking at the sudden brightness. It took a few moments for Rai and Esa's eyes to adjust, but when their visions were clear, they noticed their surroundings. The walls of the room were black, including the door. The room had absolutely no windows and there was a single tiny air shaft on the ceiling.

Esa walked over to the door and placed her hand on the doorknob. _Click_ "Huh, the door's open," Esa said, and then yelled, "Over here ko-Rai!" (Korra and Rai put together) and walked out the door. Rai quickly scrambled after her.

* * *

><p>Walking down the unlit corridor, Esa and Rai looked for a way out. <em>If we can just find the others…<em> Esa thought. After a couple more minutes of walking, Esa and Rai came upon a fork in the road. "Which one do we take?" Esa thought aloud to the empty air.

"Oooh, I know!" Rai piped. "I saw something like this in a movie, and usually, the person uses a torch or some sand to see where the air is coming from."

Esa, not amused, made a face and said, "And where are we going to get a torch, much less, sand, from _an indoor corridor_?!" Face-palming herself, Esa shook her head at Rai's stupidity. _I bet that idea came from a scene in a movie where the hero is stuck in a cave._ Esa and Rai continued to argue on the matter. Rai gave suggestions while Esa pointed out the mistakes in his plan. "Ok, even _I_ know that the air that you feel coming from _both sides_ probably has to do with the ventilation system," retorted Esa to one of Rai's suggestions.

"But you're not 100% sure," Rai pointed out.

"Oh my God, for Pete's sake! It's not like we're stranded on an island inside a cave with millions of traps like in one of those movies!" Esa said in exasperation. "How about we do this, I go right and you go left and woo frickin' hoo! We covered both sides." _In addition, I can get away from you_ Esa thought.

"Usually, a lot of things go wrong for the protagonists of the story when they split up and—"Rai started, but was cut off with Esa's glare.

Facing towards the right corridor, Esa prepared herself to go when all of a sudden, the sound of running footsteps came from the left corridor.

"Esa? Ah Esa! I knew it was you!" said a voice that came from the left corridor. Esa immediately recognized this voice as Jasmine's. Behind Jasmine were Crystal and Selina. "Good thing I recognized your voice from down the corridor.

"Mhm," Esa said, "Well, I'm guessing that we'll take the right corridor since Rai and I came from behind and you guys came from the left."

Everyone agreed and went towards the right corridor. The atmosphere around the group became less tense as the group walked together.

"So, what happened to you guys?" Esa asked Jasmine.

"Long story," Jasmine said.

* * *

><p><strong>*Jasmine's FLASHBACK*<strong>

"_Ugh, where am I?" Jasmine mumbled as she drowsily got up. She looked around and saw Selina and Crystal on the floor besides her._

"_Ow, the floor is pretty hard," Selina said as she got up as well._

_From the floor next to Selina came a groaning sound. Crystal blinked her eyes as she woke up._

_After a couple of minutes of clearing their heads, Jasmine, Selina, and Crystal went out into the corridors. They then began to roam through the corridors. After a while…_

"_Does this corridor go on FOREVER, because if it does, I really have a strong urge to bang my head against the wall."_

"_Are we gonna be lost forever?" Crystal said as she frantically tapped her iPod screen. "There isn't even wifi here! How am I going to watch the latest episode of my favorite anime or read manga!" Crystal gave a distressed looked and cradled her iPod. "It's even low on battery."_

_Glancing at Crystal, Selina took out her iPhone and checked for wifi as well. "Looks like I don't have any wifi or 3G connection here either. We must be underground or something…"_

_Looking at the two, Jasmine gave a disbelieving stare. "Are you kidding me? We're stuck in an unknown area with no food, water, or guidance, and you guys are worrying about wifi?!"Jasmine shook her head. _

"_Well, I have tried calling the police, but it seems that all connections are cut," said Selina._

"_As expected, this is the mafia you know," Crystal said with a shrug._

_***END OF FLASHBACK***_

* * *

><p>"Seems like you had a tough time too," Esa commented.<p>

"I guess you can say that," Jasmine replied.

"Uh guys, I think we have to um—"Crystal said as the group entered a big, open, gym-like area that had a very large swimming pool.

"What's a pool doing here?" Jasmine questioned aloud. The others shrugged without an answer.

"It seems like we have to swim our way to the other side to get to the other exit," Selina mused as she observed the surrounding.

Esa turned pale. "WHAT? Isn't there another way or something?"

"Nope," Selina answered. "Why? Can't you swim? I mean, even if the water is over twelve feet deep, it shouldn't be a problem if you can swim."

Crystal looked down into the pool. "Looks like a standard public swimming pool to me…just…bigger."

"Um…well you see," Jasmine started saying, "Esa kind of has a phobia for deep water and can't really swim."

Selina gave Esa a long stare. "You seriously can't swim? You've got to be kidding me. Swimming is one of the most basic survival skill."

"Well, I'm sor-ry!" Esa said scowling. "It's not like I've prepared myself all my life for this moment."

Selina just sighed and asked the rest of the group, "Do you the rest of you know how to swim?"

"Yep! I'm a pro at it," Rai cheerfully said.

"I can a bit, but not very well…or fast," Crystal mumbled.

"That's fine as long as you can swim for your life," Selina said nodding. "How about you Jasmine?"

Jasmine, avoiding eye contact, said, "I'm a pretty bad swimmer. I can float and kick my feet to move forward, but that's about it…"

Selina paused, and then answered, "I guess that's ok for now. You'll just have to manage and take it slow."

"Then let's go!" Rai excitedly said while going ahead.

"But what about my iPod?" Crystal worriedly said. "Isn't it going to get damaged if it goes into the water?"

"Here, give it to me, I'll keep it up in the air while I swim," Selina said.

Rai was just a couple of paces from the water, when all of a sudden, an alarm went off.

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

"What the heck?" Jasmine exclaimed. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, but alarms are never a good sign," Selina yelled above the siren.

Crystal, covering her ears, looked up in time to see several panels in the ceiling open row by row and shoot out several arrows and knives. She blanched.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" Esa exclaimed as she too saw what Crystal saw.

"Everyone swim to the other side before those weapons reach us!" Selina shouted as she, Rai, and Crystal jumped into the deep water. Selina and Crystal started to swim for the other side. Rai, in the water, turned around and said, "Esa-chan, get on my back and put your arms around my neck and I'll swim you to the other side."

Turning slightly red in the face, Esa stubbornly turned her head away and said, "No way am I riding on you, you pervert. I'm not doing any of the following…I don't trust you."

"C'mon Esa-chan," Rai said while stealing glances at the advancing arrows and knives.

"Hell no."

"Oh my God Esa, just get on his back and go!" Jasmine said. "Now is not the time to be stubborn!"

"Why should I?" Esa snorted.

"GET. IN. THE. WATER." Jasmine sternly said while pointing at the water.

"Don't worry Esa-chan; I'm great at swimming since I was in the swim team at my school!" Rai chimed in.

Esa scowled and said, "The water's probably cold and you won't be able to carry me that far…"

"It's only about fifteen meters Esa-chan," Rai said.

Esa twitched and stood there in indecision.

Jasmine saw the arrows and knives flying closer to them by the minute. Impatiently looking at Esa, Jasmine noticed that Selina and Crystal were waiting on the other side already. "Ok Esa, that's enough," Jasmine snapped. "I'm sorry about this, but as your friend who doesn't want to die, I AM getting you in there." Jasmine shoved Esa into the water before she could protest.

Esa flung her arms out and fell into the water with a splash and floated to the surface. Next to her, there was another splash as Jasmine jumped into the water as well. Jasmine came up to the surface and turned towards Rai. "Let's go." Rai took Esa onto his back (while Esa protested) and together, they swam to the other side. Jasmine, swimming slowly, swam at her own pace while Rai swam past her.

By the end of that, everyone was at the other side. "How lovely," Esa dryly commented as she looked around at the drenched group. "Whoever set this up is going to get a major beating from me."

* * *

><p><strong>owo<strong>


	6. Lost and Lost

**A.N.-**** Typing cause I feel like it ovo**

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR is not mine o3o**

* * *

><p>"I think we're lost," Crystal said aloud.<p>

"No really?" Jasmine sarcastically retorted.

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK OF A FEW MOMENTS AGO…*<strong>

"_So, where do we go now guys?" Esa asked as she and the rest of the group walked, "There are so many routes from here on out and it's not like we can split up again." From behind, Esa felt the stare that Rai had been giving her since they left the pool. Scowling, Esa eyed Rai and muttered, "Well maybe we can ditch one person…"_

_From behind, Rai gave a lopsided grin. "Aw, don't be like that Esa-chan. Remember, we're all in this together~!"_

_Ignoring Rai's comment, Esa turned to the others. "So anyone want to lead the way?"_

"_How about you Esa?"_

"_Errm…sure, I guess I can try and lead the way…"_

_**Ten Minutes Later…**_

"_We're at the same place we started…"Jasmine said looking around._

"_I think we somehow went around in a full circle Esa…"Selina said._

"_Hmph, then why don't you try leading the way?"_

_Uncertainly, Selina shrugged and said, "Sure."_

_**Another Ten Minutes Later…**_

"_Isn't this the same place we started? "Crystal unhelpfully pointed out._

"_Yup," Rai said._

"_See, it's not easy to navigate down here," Esa pointed out. Selina sighed and gave a shrug._

"_Hey, let me try leading this time!" Rai enthusiastically volunteered. And so Rai lead the way._

"_Um Rai, I think we're back to where we stared," Selina said after a while._

"_Oh." Rai turned to Jasmine. "Well, your turn."_

"_Heh?" Jasmine was about to refused, but in the end, Esa convinced her to lead. And so…_

"_I'm starting to think that there's no way out of here," Jasmine muttered, after yet again, returning to their original starting point._

"_Ugh, you guys suck at leading the way," Crystal said in annoyance._

_Jasmine glared at her. "Then why don't YOU try leading the way?"_

"_Fine."_

_***END FLASHBACK***_

* * *

><p>"Well if you look on the bright side," Rai said, "instead of returning to the same place, we're lost!"<p>

Everyone simultaneously turned to glare at Rai. "I see no bright side present," Esa said flatly._ I don't think my world will ever be bright with you in it anyways_.

"Well maybe if we keep walking we'll find a way out…" Rai suggested.

Everyone shrugged and just walked on as Rai had suggested. Walking down the corridor once more, the group sulkily looked around for a way out. For a while it was silent as everyone scanned the area in hopes of finding an exit. Then suddenly out of the silence, Crystal pointed and exclaimed, "Hey guys look! It's a door!" Everyone turned their heads towards the direction Crystal pointed towards. Indeed, at the end of one corridor, on the right side, was a plain metal door. As everyone started walking towards the door, Crystal ran ahead and placed a hand on the knob. When everyone had caught up to her, she slowly turned the knob and opened the door. Crystal, as well as everyone else, poked their heads in through the doorway.

"…What the heck," said Crystal as she saw the scene in front of her. In the center of the room sat Ryo, cross-legged, munching on a granola bar and staring off into space. Behind Ryo was Darke, sipping on a bottle of water and stretching out his limbs. Darke's goggles, as well as his scarf, were still on.

_Does that guy Darke wear those goggles and that scarf 24/7?_ Crystal privately thought.

"What are you guys doing here?" Selina questioned. "Did you guys just wake up?"

Darke and Ryo remained silent and unresponsive. Without any indication of speaking anytime soon, they continued to ignore the group.

"Oi, answer the question," Crystal said with slight impatience.

Darke stayed silent. Ryo on the other hand blankly looked up and said, "Mushroom…"

Crystal blinked. "Eh what?"

"Crystal-chan is a mushroom," Ryo mumbled without looking at Crystal.

Crystal cocked her head in confusion as she tried to decode this strange boy's message.

"I think he was referring to your hair Crystal," Selina whispered, trying to keep the comment non-offending.

Crystal twitched. _Little brat…My hair does not look like a mushroom!_

All of a sudden, everyone began to ask questions all at once. Some people asked nicely while others asked demandingly. Everyone waited for a reply or an answer from Darke or Ryo, but the two people continued to stay silent.

"Ugh," Crystal growled in annoyance, "Can't you two say _something_ at least!?"

Ryo turned and looked at Crystal. "Something," Ryo said with a blank expression.

"Oh you little—"Crystal said with a suppressed snarl.

"Stop all your bickering," Darke cut in suddenly with a cool edge, "It's annoying."

Everyone immediately stopped talking as Darke spoke those words. Darke held a strong, commanding, yet independent aura. Everyone seemed to have notice this, or at least partly…except for Rai.

"C'mon, don't be like that Darke-kun~" Rai said while walking towards Darke. When he got next to Darke, he sat down and put an arm around Darke's shoulder. "We're all in the same boat, so let's get along—"

Darke shoved Rai away from him while saying in a dangerously calm voice, "Get off of me." Standing up, Darke walked towards the door. Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina parted to let him through. Darke walked out into the corridor, stopped, then turned his head towards Ryo. Ryo expressionlessly stared back up at Darke and then stood up. Ryo too, went out the door to follow Darke. In silent agreement, Esa and the others followed Darke's lead as well. As the group silently walked down the hallway, a gap grew between Darke and Ryo, and the rest of the group. In the back, Crystal walked with a scowl on her face. Turning to Selina, Crystal whispered, "I'm not liking that guy Darke. All he does is ignore people and stay silent."

"Mmm…" Selina quietly replied with a shrug.

Continuing to walk, Crystal fumed in her own mind. _Who does this guy think he is? Darke…that guy won't answer a single question! Can't he see that he's being annoying and rude! Seriously, what's his problem? And that little boy Ryo…he's annoying too. Anyways, why does that kid even listen to that guy?_ Unable to contain her impatience, annoyance, and curiosity any longer, Crystal raised her voice and directly asked Darke, "Where are we going Darke? Do you even _know_ where to go?"

Darke stayed silent as he moved through the corridor. He and Ryo didn't even glance at the questioner.

Crystal, annoyed that she was being ignored, said, "Hey! Did you even hear me?! Well, I'm pretty sure you did, so answer my question!"

Everyone, though they didn't voice it, was curious of their destination as well. In the front, Darke stopped walking and sharply turned around to face Crystal. "We're going to the exit Crystal. Ryo and I had already found an exit long before you and the others had arrived. The only reason we stayed back was to take a rest. Now be quiet if you're going to follow," Darke coolly said. His expression, unfortunately, could not be seen through the scarf and the goggles.

"I'll stay quiet if I want to," Crystal said defiantly, puffing out her sheeks. She was still annoyed with Darke. "Why don't you stop being so silent about everything and tell us the important facts!"

"I'll say what needs to be said in times of need," Darke answered back, "No one asked you to tag along so don't complain."

"W-well, if you know where the exit is then no duh I'll be going to the same place!" Crystal stammered.

"Oh?" Darke said with a half-smirked, half-purred. Then he turned back around and continued walking.

Crystal, slightly red in the face, walked with a glare. After several more minutes of walking, the group arrived at a single red door marked **EXIT**. Darke placed his hand on the knob, turned it, and pushed the door open. Darke and the rest of the group then entered into an enormous room. The first thing you would recognize about this room was the size. The second thing you would notice about this room was its interior design. The enormous room the group had walked into looked like a cross between a checker board, the game 'Candyland', and a kid's coloring book. The floor of this enormous room was tiled with the colors of the rainbow, while the walls and ceiling were splotched with multiple neon colors. In the center of the room was a giant present box that looked about eight feet tall. The present itself was orange with pink ribbons, topped off with a golden bow. Near the bottom of the present was a door that had four locks. All around the room were random things too, such as: a giant non-edible lollipop, a row of dolls on a shelf, weapons, balls, balloons, oversized pencils…

"What the heck is this?" Crystal exclaimed.

"Argh," Jasmine mumbled in annoyance, "the neon splotches and checkered floor are irritating my eyes." Taking off her glasses for a moment, she rubbed her eyes.

"Whoever designed this place has a bad taste in choosing colors," Esa muttered, wrinkling her nose.

"What is this suppose to be?" Selina questioned, "It seems as if this room was created for a purpose…"

"Woah," Rai said, looking around. Rai curiously looked around to see all the features of the room. Unable to see everything, Rai stepped forward onto the tiled floor to have a better look.

"Watch out baka!" Esa yelled while pulling Rai back with his shirt collar.

Rai fell backwards and began to cough. "Ow, Esa-chan, you know, you didn't have to choke me."

"Well, you _were_ about to become a shishkabob," Esa said, "Just look where you were standing and see what's there!"

Rai looked over at the green tile that he had just been standing on. On it were several snakes slithering around. Everyone took a step back.

"How the heck did _those_ get there?" Jasmine questioned incredulously.

"I don't really know," Esa muttered, "They just slithered out of nowhere…"

"Yay!" Rai suddenly said out of nowhere, "Esa-chan saved my life!"

"What?" Esa said, confused.

"That's why you saved me, isn't it?" Rai happily said, "You cared about my safety, so you saved me! Could this be true love?"

Esa made a face and retorted, "The only reason I saved you was so that I wouldn't have to lug around your injured/unconscious/dead body. Plus, this isn't 'true love'; it's more like if I'm happy, then you'll be alive." Esa turned away.

"And where did that random statement 'Could this be true love?' come from? If he was joking, he seriously has bad timing," Esa muttered to herself.

"Love you too Esa-chan," Rai cooed with a laugh.

Esa gave Rai her best glare and muttered, "Maybe I should've just left you there."

Cutting into Esa's muttering, Selina said, "There seems to be booby-traps around here…that's what I think anyways. Let me test my theory." Rummaging through her pocket, Selina pulled out several candies. Picking one up, Selina tossed it onto the indigo tile, three tile rows away. Immediately, knives whizzed through the air from somewhere and skewered the piece of candy.

"Woah!" Esa exclaimed, "That thing was shishkabobbed. Cool."

"Uh yeah. Well, I don't think it'd be so 'cool' to you if you were the candy Esa," Jasmine remarked.

"Meh," Esa replied.

"Oh hey guys come over here and look at this!" Rai shouted from several feet away. Everyone walked towards Rai and looked at what he was pointing at.

"Huh, it looks like directions engraved onto the floor," Selina said. Everyone buzzed with conversation as they looked and read through the directions engraved on the ground. In the end though, Darke, Ryo, and Selina remained around the engraved ground (while the others observed the area) as they contemplated the possible meanings behind them. After a few more minutes of talking, the three stood up, and Selina said, "Hey guys, I think I know how to get through this trap…"

* * *

><p><strong>Hm, was this chapter well constructed? o-o? Review and tell me please XD<strong>


	7. Game

_**Disclaimer:**_** Disclaiming KHR.**

* * *

><p>"What are you doing?" Crystal curiously asked.<p>

Selina, still continuing to throw candy replied, "Mmm…I'm finding the path."

"Eh?" Crystal said in confusion, "What path?"

"I'll explain it to you guys in a moment," Selina answered absent-mindedly, "Just give me a few more minutes to do this." Selina went back to throwing pieces of candy on the square tiles. Some tiles sprung traps while others did not. Selina yawned. "Mmm…I'm tired…"

Crystal incredulously stared at Selina as she continued to work and said, "How can you be tired after getting drugged and being asleep for who knows how long?"

"Mmm…" Selina mumbled.

Crystal sighed. Standing up, Crystal turned around and began to walk away. "I'm going to the rest of the group, so tell us how to get past the trap ASAP."

"M'kay," Selina answered without turning her head.

Crystal walked a couple of steps and got to Esa and the others, who were discussing things amongst themselves.

"…I'm telling you, it was Anrya who drugged the cookies and milk," Esa argued, "I'm pretty sure of it too. I mean, Anrya was the one who made, baked, and served the cookies so who else can it be?"

"Well…she seemed like such a nice and normal girl to me…" Rai mumbled.

Esa snorted and answered, "Nice? Normal? Those aren't the first words I think of when I see Anrya. I'm not saying she's mean or anything, but…I've known her for a while and weird and scary are the words I think of when I see Anrya."

"Plus, no one is normal in this world," Jasmine added.

"Well, you never know Jasmine-chan, Esa-chan~!" Rai said, "The world is full of surprises, and so are people!"

"If the world's surprise for me is inviting me half-way across the world, then making me meet my boss/friend who I haven't seen in a while, then getting drugged and kidnapped and put in an unknown place with a perv (Rai: "Huh? What perv?), then going through a frickin' long corridor with other people who are either weird, non-social or completely silent, then entering a room that is hazardous to my life; then life needs a several bitch slaps to the face cause I say _screw you life._"

"Wow, that was one of the longest statements I've ever heard come out of your mouth Esa," Jasmine said.

"Yeah, I liked it," Crystal piped in.

Esa swiveled around to see Crystal standing behind her. "Oh hey, when did you get here?"

"Since a while ago," Crystal replied, "You were so busy talking that you didn't notice me."

"Oh," Esa said. Then turning back to Rai, she flatly said, "Well that's my opinion on life, I'm not even going to start on how I feel about some people, life was crappy enough."

"Well, as the saying goes: When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!" Rai cheerfully said.

Esa narrowed her eyes and replied, "How about I get those lemons and shove them down your throat, cause unlike you, I'm not an optimist."

"Heh~" Rai nervously laughed. And the conversation continued.

From a distance, Darke watched and listened to the multiple conversations that were being held. "…." Ryo, who was next to Darke, chewed on some bubblegum that he had found in his pocket. Turning to his brother, Ryo asked, "Onii-san, when are we going to get out of here?"

Without turning his head, Darke answered Ryo's question with only one word: "Soon." Ryo remained silent after that and blew a bubble.

"Whoa, you two are brothers?" Crystal said in disbelief. She, as well as the rest of the group, walked towards Darke and Ryo's location in hearing their voices.

"Sorry if I'm being rude or interrupting your conversation but, did you guys just become social for like five seconds? I'm mean, you finally had a short conversation," Jasmine said.

"Yep, it seemed as though they finally came out of the EMO corner," Esa added in.

Darke and Ryo returned back to their silent selves as the swarm of people gathered around them.

"I think we just ruined their talking time," Jasmine said, "Yeah…we did."

"But I still can't believe that they're brothers! I mean look! They look nothing alike!" Crystal said.

"Yeah, I guess you can't tell from just their looks alone," Esa said, "Darke has raven-black hair while Ryo has light pink hair…"

"True," Crystal said.

"Hey guys, I just noticed that all the guys except for Darke have colorful hair," Jasmine said, "I mean, like me, Crystal, and Selina all have some kind of hair coloring, but not in colors that are so…eye-catching."

"Yeah, you're right," Esa said, "Well, between Ryo and Rai, I can't tell who has the more 'eye-catching' hair. Light pink is pretty unusual for a guy, but so is red and green…"

"It's maroon and green," Rai corrected.

"Same difference," Jasmine retorted, "Either way, your hair still looks something like a Christmas tree.

Rai pouted at the comment.

"This is my natural hair color," Ryo quietly said, staring off into space, "I never colored it."

"Really? That's so cool!" Crystal commented, "What about you Rai?"

"The maroon is my natural hair color and the green tips are highlights," Rai answered, still pouting. As the conversation continued, Selina finished her work and came over to the group with her feet scuffling on the ground.

"Hey guys, I'm ready to tell you what I know about the trap now," Selina said, approaching the group.

"Finally," Crystal muttered.

"This may take a while so…sit down if you want to," Selina said. Selina sat down and the rest followed. "Ok, so, to simply put this, we have to go through the tiles and get to the door on the present over there, ok?" Selina looked around to see if everyone had followed. Everyone nodded. "But that explanation is only in a nutshell. There are many other things you have to keep in mind. You have to remember to be cautious of where you step and go because this room is full of traps. Also, since there's a certain path we have to take we can't just stroll through this place. And one more thing, we need four keys to open that door on the present. If you look at it carefully, you can see the four key holes. You understand guys?"

Everyone nodded again.

"Now then, I'll be going into detail."

"The tiles on the ground are in the colors of the rainbow as you can see. Each tile seems to be a two meter by two meter square. That area is large enough to fit the seven of us. From the door we've just came through to the first row of tiles are a void space. They don't have any tiles, therefore, no traps. _On_ the tiles though, there are certain tiles with traps and certain ones without them. Through springing some traps with some candy that I had, I was able to find a path/pattern. The path goes in rainbow order starting from red. Assuming that we follow the path, we should be fine. I've already said this but I'll repeat it again: _Make sure you don't step on the wrong tile, not even a little bit, because you will get hurt_. Also, the same trap can be sprung more than once."

"Oh joy," Jasmine muttered.

"And, along this path, I assume that we're going to find the keys that we need for the door. As you can see," Selina pointed toward a tile, "there's a purple key hanging from the ceiling above a purple tile. Following the path, that tile will probably be the seventh tile even though it's only two rows away from us. And…I think that's it. That's as much as I know anyways."

"Wow Selina-chan," Rai said, "You're very smart. How did you figure that out?"

Selina shyly smiled and said, "Well, I didn't figure the whole thing out. Some details were found by accident, some were pointed out by Darke, but most of the information was from the directions engraved on the ground. I only put them together like a puzzle."

"Still, you were able to tell that really difficult plan to everyone else," Rai said.

"Mmm…" Selina said with a slight shrug, "Someone had to talk."

From the left, Crystal came walking up and said, "Hey, remember how you said that the purple tile with the key is only two rows away? Since it's only two rows, couldn't we just jump over one tile to get there? I mean, it's quicker."

"That's true," Selina said, "But do you think you can jump that far?"

"It doesn't seem that far," Crystal said with a shrug, "If I had a running start, I could probably make it…"

Selina disagreed with Crystal's thought. Taking out her iPhone, Selina went to the converting app and checked what two meters equaled in feet. Finding the answer, Selina looked up and said, "Crystal, two meters equals 6.56168 feet. If we round that, it's about 6.6 feet. Do you _really_ think you can jump that far?"

"Uh…I guess not," Crystal mumbled.

"Did these people purposely make each tile two meter by two meter so that we couldn't jump tile to tile and get through this place quicker?" Esa said scowling.

"I guess so," Jasmine said.

"That's the least of our worries," Selina said, "Look." Pointing at the purple tile that was approximately four meters away from them, Selina showed the others what she saw. Hanging near the top of the ceiling was an oversized, purple key. Encircling around the key were panels of glass attached to an invisible wire. If a person just glanced at that direction, they wouldn't notice any of the panels. Only if you looked at it from the right angle where the light touched upon it, were you able to see them. Basically, that whole structure looked like multiple glass swings that spiraled up like an invisible spiral staircase.

"That looks safe," Jasmine commented.

"What the heck," Esa muttered.

"How the hell are we supposed to get up there?" Crystal said, "The key is like twenty feet up in the air with a very unsafe looking 'spiral staircase' around it."

"Maybe if one person climbed up the panels very slowly, they could probably get to the key," Rai said doubtfully.

"And who's that person going to be?" Esa retorted.

"Let's just get going guys, we'll figure something out when we get—"Selina was cut off as Darke ran past her in a quick and lithe movement. Gaining some speed, Darke suddenly unleashed a mysterious glow of purple flames. His scarf undid itself and seemed to have multiplied. Then the multiplied scarves tied themselves onto each other and partially stayed on Darke. Using his scarf as a spring board, Darke was able to jump over the yellow tile and onto the purple one. His scarf returned to him, and wasting no time, Darke jumped from panel to panel with the help of his scarf and retrieved the key. By the time Darke got back to the ground, everyone was gaping at him from the other side.

"Well that solves that problem," Jasmine said.

"Whoa, those flames…" Rai said.

"Yeah, Cloud flames. It matches in color and description," Esa said.

"The letter described something like this, but I really didn't believe it till now," Rai said in wonder.

"Hey guys, let's not keep him waiting," Selina said, "Let's go." Selina led the rest of the group to the first red tile and then through the path until they reached Darke.

"Nice," Rai complimented. Darke remained silent and casually tossed the key to Selina. Catching the purple key, Selina pocketed it. "Let's go."

Selina, Darke, and everybody else continued to follow the path. Soon, the group had to cross diagonally from the green tile to the blue one. Reminding everyone to watch their steps, Selina jumped to the next tile, making sure not to step on any unnecessary tiles. Near the back of the group, Rai was beginning to get bored of walking in silence. Several times he _had_ walked alongside Crystal or Jasmine, but they didn't talk for too long. Eager to quench his boredom, Rai sneaked up behind Esa, brought his lips close to her ear and purred playfully, "Esa-chan, your hair smells delicious. What shampoo do you use?" and spazzed her quickly.

In hearing this odd statement and being spazzed, Esa completely freaked out and went into you-better-not-do-something-perverted-to-me-or-els e-I'm-gonna-kick-your-ass mode. Esa swerved around to Rai to give him a good shove as well as a death glare. In mid-swerve though, Esa lost balance and began to fall backwards. Flailing her arms, Esa grabbed onto anything that would help keep her balance. Unfortunately, Esa grabbed onto Rai's shirt collar which choked Rai, and in turn, made him lose balance too.

"Ouch," Esa said, falling on her butt.

"Ahhh!" Rai yelled as he, unfortunately, fell on his back.

Esa and Rai had both fallen…..on the red tile.

"Ugh," Esa muttered, "Looks like we fell onto the red—oh shit!"

A clicking sound came from the red tile as it suddenly revealed many tiny holes. Slowly from one side of the tile came a row of needles shooting out of the ground like bullets.

"Aw fuck," Esa swore and scrambled to get up and out of the way.

Rai rolled over and he too, tried to escape the wave of needles that were advancing towards him. Rai and Esa were quite close to the safe blue tile so they only needed to crawl to get out of the way. As the two crawled towards safety, the rest of the group shouted in warning. Esa, now safely on the blue tile, turned around to see Rai almost to safety. Then, in hearing the rest of the group's warning, Esa looked around Rai to see a needle going for his head. Without thinking, Esa ran to the edge of the blue tile, stuck her arm out…and gave Rai a smack upside the head. The momentum from the smack made Rai stumble onto the safe blue tile a tad bit quicker. Esa then pulled back, but not before a needle struck her arm.

"Ow. Ow. Ow," Esa said while hissing in pain. The needle stuck in her arm was swiftly removed, for it was not that thick. Looking at her arm, Esa saw a small blob of blood swelling up.

"Are you ok Esa?" Selina worriedly asked.

"Yeah, I'm ok. I've had paper cuts that were bigger than this…" Esa replied.

"Um ok."

"Are you ok?" Jasmine asked as well.

"Yes, I'm fine," Esa repeated.

"Are you ok Esa-chan?" Rai asked.

"Yes. I'm. Fine," Esa repeated once again.

"Well, thanks Esa-chan," Rai said with a smile, "You saved my life again…though I don't know how to react to the method you used to save me…"

Esa snorted. "Just be glad you're not dead."

"Aw, Esa-chan, thanks for caring about me. I know you're a bit tsundere, but don't be shy about it~"Rai teased.

"Yes Esa-chan~" Jasmine mimicked, "Don't be shy, why don't you give him a hug."

Esa glared at both Jasmine and Rai. Giving Jasmine a punch to the arm, Esa turned to Rai and said, "Rai, SHUT. UP."

"Um…guys, can you stop fighting so that we can get the next key," Selina said.

Esa, Jasmine, and Rai glanced at Selina and nodded. In front of the group was a tall maze that stood on an indigo tile. The maze took up the whole tile, and its walls were made of mirrors.

"This shouldn't be so hard," Crystal said, "The maze in only on this tile so it shouldn't be that large."

"Such a small maze shouldn't even be called a maze," Esa said with a snort.

"Then let's go," Selina said.

As everyone entered the very small maze, a sliding mirror blocked the way they came through and a heavy mist settled in.

"Uh…special effects?" Crystal said in confusion.

"Who cares, let's just get through this," Jasmine said.

The group started walking through the maze in a single file. There seemed to be only one path that led the way.

"Wow, this is so stupid," Crystal said, "What kind of maze only has one path?"

"Meh," Esa said.

"Is anyone else slightly creeped out by the really tall mirror/walls and the thick mist?" Jasmine asked.

"Nope," Esa, Crystal, Rai, and Selina simultaneously answered. Ryo and Darke continued to remain silent.

Continuing to walk through the maze, the group took turns in several places. After a couple minutes passed, Jasmine started to get worried.

"Why aren't we there yet?" Jasmine asked.

"We're probably almost there," Crystal answered in a bored tone.

"But it's true that we've been walking around for a while," Esa commented, "This tile isn't big enough to contain an actual maze so we should've already been to the end."

"I guess so," Crystal said with a shrug.

"Maybe we've been going in circles?" Rai said unsurely.

"It's hard to tell since I can only see about three feet ahead and the view to the ceiling and tiles are blocked by the walls and mist," Selina said.

"Maybe we can stick something to the floor and go around again to see if we've come to a full circle," Esa suggested.

"Ah, I just want to get out of here," Rai mumbled. Rai turned his back to the wall and leaned back to rest on it.

"Waah!" Rai yelled as he fell _through_ the wall and disappeared.

"Huh?" Esa said in confusion.

"Is it just me or did Rai just fall through the wall?" Jasmine questioned.

From the front, Darke and Ryo came walking to the place where Rai had fallen through. There were no holes or blemishes on the shiny mirror surface. Placing his hand on the wall, Darke found that his hand went through. Everyone looked at this with shock. Darke, along with Ryo, walked through the wall and disappeared. Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina all exchanged glances and walked through the wall one by one. When the four got to the other side, they saw the three boys already there. In the center was an indigo key that hung from a string. Darke reached for the key and took it off the string.

"Ow," Rai said, rubbing his back, "That's the second time I fell on my back today."

"Sucks to be you," Esa said with a smirk.

When Darke pulled the indigo key out of its string, the mist around and above them began to clear and a sign on one side of the wall could be seen. The sign read: **EXIT :P**.

"What's the colon and 'P' for?" Jasmine asked.

"It's like the exit sign is sticking out its tongue at us," Crystal said.

"I bet the jerk that made this is having fun watching us go through this," Esa muttered.

"Let's go~!" Rai said, enthusiastic once more. Recovered from his fall, Rai walked towards the exit sign and prepared himself to go through it…but instead, smacked headfirst into it. "Ow," Rai muttered, rubbing his face. The mirror/wall in front of them fell down and the tiled floors could be seen once again. Behind Rai, Esa and some others laughed.

"I guess _that's_ what the sign was sticking its tongue out for," Crystal said while laughing.

"Hmph," Rai shrugged.

When everyone had finished laughing, they walked onto the purple tile and continued through the path once more. Red…orange…yellow…green. When the seven came to the green tile, they all stopped walking. On the green tile, there stood a stand with a green key on it.

"Well that's easy," Crystal said, and walked up to the stand. Picking up the key, Crystal gave a satisfied smile…that is, until a wall of electric sparks blocked the way to the next safe tile. "Tch, I should've known…"

Looking at the wall of electric sparks, the group gave a sigh.

"Now how do we get through this?" Jasmine asked.

"Well, there's a little weird looking rod coming out from the ground that's emitting the electric sparks. Maybe there's a switch or plug somewhere…" Esa said, her voice trailing off.

"Maybe we should come up with a plan? What if the only choice we have left is to go through one of the unsafe tiles?" Jasmine asked.

"I know!" Crystal suddenly exclaimed.

Jasmine turned to Crystal and said, "You have a plan?"

Crystal picked up the stand and answered, "Screw planning." Then Crystal threw the stand at the rod that came up from the ground and broke it. The electric sparks started dying out and with a final spark, it completely stopped. "Yeah!" Crystal cheered.

"Wow…that actually worked," Jasmine said.

Crystal smiled back at everyone and gave the green key a twirl. Facing towards the right direction, Crystal pocketed the key and led the way. Blue…purple…red…orange…yellow…green…blue.

"What the heck," Jasmine said as she and the rest stopped in front of the blue tile. The blue tile was not exactly a tile…it was more of a mini swimming pool.

"I don't want to swim again," Esa said in a sulky tone.

"You don't even have to swim in this," Crystal said, "It's only two meters long. If you just kick once in the water, you'll get to the other side."

"But I don't want to get _wet_ again," Esa complained.

"Too bad," Jasmine said in slight annoyance, "If you survived going through a really big pool, then you can survive a two meter pool. Even I could do this."

"Mmmph…" Esa muttered.

Leaning over the pool, Rai squinted at the water. "Why is this water so…blue?"

"Well it's water no duh," Crystal commented.

"No, I know that," Rai said, "But this water is really blue…and kinda glowy too."

"Eh, probably chlorine or something," Esa said with a shrug.

"Ah! I see something else too!" Rai exclaimed. Kneeling on the ground and bringing his face closer to the surface of the water, Rai saw a blue key at the bottom of the pool. "Hey, there's a key down there!"

"I'm not getting that," Jamine said.

"And I can't swim," Esa said.

"Then I'll go get it!" Rai said enthusiastically.

"No, I'll get it," Selina said, "You need to carry Esa on you back since she can't swim. I'm a good swimmer so it'll be ok."

"Oh no, I _do not_ want to get on the perv's back again," Esa said, "I can just hold onto the sides of the pool and bring myself to the other side."

"Esa, there _is_ no side to this pool, at least not a blue tiled one. If you touch the sides, then you'll trigger a trap," Selina reminded, "This whole blue tile _is_ the pool after all."

"Shit," Esa said with a scowl. "Hmph, then I'll try kicking my way to the other side. It's not that far anyways."

"Are you sure Esa?" Selina said doubtfully, "The pool is a bit deep, if you can't swim, then that'll be a problem."

"I'll manage," Esa stubbornly replied.

"O-kay," Selina said skeptically.

"Yay! Let's get going!" Rai happily yelled. Then he jumped into the water, as did Jasmine and Crystal.

"What the—" Crystal said as she hit the water.

"Huh?" Rai said.

"What's wrong?" Selina questioned.

"The water…it's like honey…" Jasmine said.

"Uh…what?" Esa asked, not quite understanding what her friend meant.

"It's like the water is slowing my movement," Jasmine said, trying to stay afloat.

"This water's weird," Crystal added.

Esa and Selina stooped down and observed the water. Dipping her hand in the water, Esa tested the water and found that she had some difficulty wiggling her fingers.

"I think this water is mixed with Rain flames," Esa said, "It fits the description anyways…"

"Yeah, I read about that too," Selina said, "If that's the case, then you _have_ to get on Rai's back to get to the other side. There's no way you can get there alone."

Esa didn't like the sound of that but knew it was true. "Damn it."

"I'll wait until you guys get to the other side, then I'll dive in and try to get the key," Selina said.

Everyone nodded and continued to swim. Esa got down into the water and onto Rai's back as the rest of the group slowly swam to the other side.

"Hm?" Selina said as she turned around, "Darke, Ryo, aren't you guys going too?"

Darke just glanced at Selina and turned away. Grabbing onto Ryo, Darke unleashed his Cloud flames once more and used it to jump across the pool and onto the next safe tile.

"Not fair," Esa complained in the water.

After a few more seconds, the four in the water got to the other side and climbed out. Selina saw that everyone has cleared out of the water and dived right into the water. Hitting the surface, Selina was immediately slowed down by the Rain flames in the water. _I better hurry and get that key, or else I'm going to run out of air…_ Selina thought. As she continued to sink into the water, she felt as if she was moving extremely slow. Inch by inch Selina moved down deeper. _C'mon…c'mon…_ she thought, because by this time, one fourth of Selina's air supply was already gone. After a few more excruciatingly slow seconds, Selina's fingers felt the key. Moving her fingers as fast as they would go, Selina grabbed onto the key and turned her body around. When her feet touched the ground, Selina forced her leg muscles to spring her back up as fast as possible. Underwater, Selina grimaced. _Almost all my air supply is gone now…_ Selina started to float up again. She looked up into the light as her air supply ran low. _Almost there…_ Her vision started to blur slightly, but Selina continued to will her body to move up. After a few more slow seconds passed, Selina's head broke into the surface and she gasped for air.

"Are you ok Selina?" Jasmine called from the other side.

"Yeah," Selina answered, slightly short on breath. Taking her time to get to the other side, Selina made sure to keep a good grip on the blue key. When she finally got to the other side, Rai and Jasmine helped her up to the indigo tile. Selina took a moment to catch her breath and stood up.

"Let's go guys," Crystal called out.

The seven began to run through the path once more. Purple…red…orange…yellow…green…blue…indigo…purple… red…orange…yellow…green…blue…indigo…The seven people were finally in front of the present now.

"Phew, that was an adventure!" Rai said.

"More like the most hellish experience in my life," Esa muttered.

"Can you give me your keys?" Selina asked everyone.

Darke and Crystal handed Selina their keys and Selina took out the purple key from her pocket. Facing the door, Selina looked at the four key holes in front of her. _The purple key goes first…then the indigo…then the green…and finally the blue._ Placing each key in its designated key hole, Selina turned each one, one by one. When Selina turned the last key with a click, the door slowly opened inward to a dark room. The seven stepped in and the lights automatically flickered on.

* * *

><p>"What the—" Esa said, staring at the center of the room.<p>

"Anrya?" Jasmine said in confusion.

There in the center of the room was Anrya, tied up and hanging upside down from the ceiling. "About time you came," she grumbled.

"What do you mean? You're the one that drugged us and sent us to this place!" Jasmine accused.

"What's going on?" Rai questioned, still unsure of the situation.

Jasmine ignored Rai and continued. "You know how much we had to go through? That was the most uncomfortable situation that I've ever been in!"

"I'll explain everything to you, but first, can you get me down from here? All the blood is rushing into my brain," Anrya said in a slightly sick voice.

"Serves you right," Crystal said with a huff.

"Ugh…" Anrya groaned, "I didn't drug you guys, so let me get down so I can explain what's going on."

"I don't believe you," Esa said, crossing her arms.

"It wasn't that weakling that drugged us," Darke calmly said.

"How do _you_ know?" Crystal questioned, but Darke remained silent after saying what he needed to say. "Ugh," Crystal muttered in reaction to Darke's silence.

"Let's just let her down guys," Selina said after a yawn, "I want to hear what she has to say." Walking over to the pick that held the rope, Selina began to pull it out so that Anrya could get down.

"WAIT!" Esa cried.

Selina glanced at Esa and gave her a questioning look.

"Just wait a moment," Esa said again. Rummaging through her pocket, Esa pulled out her cell phone and held it up.

"What are you doing?" Jasmine asked Esa.

"I'm going to take a picture of this," Esa said gleefully, "This _is_ funny after all."

Jasmine raised an eyebrow, and then said, "Good point," and took out her own phone.

"You suck," Anrya muttered.

"Heehee~" Esa said with a smile. "Ok, you can let her down now."

Selina undid the ties on the rope, and the rope loosed up and dropped Anrya on the floor, face first.

"Ow, my face," Anrya moaned. Still dizzy from all the blood going into her head, Anrya remained on the floor and took heavy breaths. When her head had stopped pounding and her vision had returned to normal, Anrya sat up and looked at the others. Fixing her glasses, Anrya sighed and began to talk. "Ok guys, I'm gonna explain this quickly. One, I did not drug you, Zero did that—"

"Who's Zero?" Crystal questioned.

Anrya stopped mid-sentence and answered, "Some person I know. He's part of an organization, but his story can be saved for later…Going back to what I said, I did not drug you guys, what happened was this:"

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK*<strong>

"_Oh yeah, by the way, a guy that I know wants to give us some kind of physical test thing…I don't know what it is or when it is, but I just wanted to give you guys a heads up. Um, I'm going to be getting the cookies now." Anrya walked out of the living room and went to the kitchen._

_Walking through the mini hallway, Anrya reached the kitchen. Inside the kitchen was a guy, around 17 years old, who had snow white hair and wore a long black coat. His outfit was quite peculiar since it was black and lined with silver. On his left arm was a gold 'Z' and under his coat, he wore a maroon shirt. The strangest thing about him was his mismatched eyes. One was red while the other was silver. _

"_What are you doing here Zero?" Anrya asked as she entered the kitchen._

"_I'm just preparing things for the physical test that I'm about to give you and your guardians~" Zero answered._

"_Um…ok?"_

_Zero walked up to Anrya and gave her a smile. "Prepare yourself for this test Anrya-chan~"_

"_Wait, what's this test going to be like? I—"_

_Anrya was cut off mid-sentence as Zero swiftly injected something into Anrya's neck. Yelping, Anrya fell to the ground in sudden dizziness._

"_Hmhmhm~ Now, I just need to call my accomplice~" Zero picked up a glass cup and promptly dropped it. The glass cup shattered to a million pieces and made a nice piercing sound._

_**-Back in the livingroom-**_

"_So, how do you guys like this place?" Ace asked _

_He was answered with some comments like: "I like this place" or "This place is huge" and etc. As Ace opened his mouth to ask another question, a yelp was heard from the kitchen followed by the shattering of glass. _

_Ace sighed. __"Wait a moment guys, I'm going to go help Anrya with the broken glass," he said as he walked away. _

_**-At the kitchen-**_

_Ace entered the kitchen and gazed at the scene around him. Zero stood in front of him holding an injecting needle while Anrya was sprawled on the ground. "You ready Zero?"_

"_Hmhmhm~ Of course I am~" Surrounding his body, an eerie indigo flame transformed Zero to look just like Anrya._

"_You pulled that off nicely."_

"_Of course I did, I'm a top illusionist after all~" Zero chuckled in Anrya's voice._

"_Yeah…" Ace glanced at Anrya. "Just make sure to actually act like Anrya."_

"_Hm~" Zero smiled and took the plate of cookies and handed the tray of milk to Ace. "Let's get going Ace, we shouldn't keep our guests waiting~"_

_Ace sighed and shook his head. _

"_I drugged the cookies and milk, but just in case, I'll hold on to a tranquilizing gun."_

_Zero/Anrya and Ace left the kitchen and headed for the livingroom._

_On the floor of the kitchen, Anrya let out a last groan. "Damn it."_

***END OF FLASHBACK***

* * *

><p>"Wow…" Jasmine commented.<p>

"Whoa," Crystal said, "It's like one of those things you would see in movies or animes. Pretty cool."

"NOT cool," Anrya said firmly, "If you ever had a tranquilizing dart jabbed into your neck, and had your hands and feet tied up, I bet you wouldn't say 'cool'."

Esa gave a quiet snicker.

"Two," Anrya continued, "this test isn't done yet. Before I was hung up here, Zero was "kind" enough to tell me that we had a final stage after this…"

"Aw, c'mon!" Jasmine whined.

"Yeah, I know it sucks but deal with it," Anrya said, "The next stage should be starting around—"

Anrya was cut off by the shaking of the present. All eight people in the room tried to stay balanced as the room shook.

"It's starting!" Anrya shouted.

The walls of the present collapsed and the ceiling lifted up and away. Now, the present was no longer enclosed. The rest of the large tiled room could be seen.

"Hello everyone~" said a voice from above.

All eight people looked up to see a guy with white hair and mismatched eyes staring down at them as he floated.

"Zero!" Anrya shouted.

"Hi~" Zero said giving a slight wave.

"End this test already!" Esa shouted, "I want to get out of here!"

"No can do Esa-chan~" Zero said with an alluring purr, "First you'll have to finish this final stage~"

"What is this final stage?" Anrya asked.

"You'll be facing an opponent—" Zero replied.

"What!" Jasmine exclaimed.

"—and your opponent…will be me!"

* * *

><p><strong>owo Hi.<strong>


	8. Let's Survive

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR no mine. KHR why art thou not mine!**

* * *

><p>Suspended in the air, Zero gazed upon the eight people who gazed right back at him. Observing each person, Zero softly laughed, his eyes glittering. Turning to Anrya, he said, "What an interesting group of guardians you've assembled~ I'm surprised that you chose such inexperienced teenagers to be your guardians when there were plenty of people to choose from."<p>

"Hmph~ That's really none of your business but I'll explain why I chose them anyways," Anrya huffed. "I would've felt uncomfortable having adults or anyone else as my guardians; therefore, these seven are suitable for me."

Zero chuckled at what Anrya said, and Anrya indignantly glared up at him. "Ah Anrya-chan~" Zero said, "When it comes to life-and-death situations, you may need more experienced people. You yourself aren't experienced in the first place, so gathering more inexperienced people will just weaken your family~"

"Then we'll just get stronger as we go along," Anrya snapped.

"But as of right now, you and your guardians are too weak. Weak guardians won't help you get through this test~" Zero said.

"So what? It's just a test," Anrya said rolling her eyes, "If we fail, we can always work on our mistakes."

"Ah~ But you see, that isn't how this test works," Zero said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Esa questioned, joining the conversation. Esa didn't like the smile that played upon Zero's lips.

Zero inclined his head slightly towards Esa and replied, "I'll tell you that right now. It's quite simple really. If the eight of you fail this test, then you will be…eliminated…"

"W-wait, what?" Crystal said, her voice slightly shaking.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Esa protested, "We didn't know what was going to happen in this test of yours!"

"She's right Zero," Anrya said, "You never gave me the details to this test. We were completely unprepared for this."

Zero amusedly listened to each protest until he answered, "Things happen in a flash~ Life isn't going to warn you before events occur. You'll just have to be prepared for the worst."

"Ugh," Esa muttered, "Why does this have to happen to us?"

Zero smiled wickedly. "Esa-chan~ I'm going to quote what your little friend said earlier: _Life is full of surprises, as are people…_"

Esa frowned in hearing Rai's words being repeated. Then remembering something, she said, "Hey! How did you know that Kor-Rai said that? You weren't there with us when he said that!"

Zero chuckled. "I was watching you all go through your little adventure while I stayed hidden by my illusion," Zero answered. "I must say, it was quite entertaining to follow you and tinker your path with my illusions."

"…So wait, were you the one that made us go in circles when we were trying to find the exit?" Crystal glared at Zero.

"Hm?" Zero said in slight confusion. Then recalling the moment he answered, "Ah that~ No, that was just your friends' poor sense of direction."

"Ah…" Anrya said, and gave the others a long stare. "You guys got lost?"

"Hey, it was an unfamiliar place," Jasmine said defensively.

"Yeah, long story," Esa replied with a shrug. Turning back to Zero, Esa asked, "So, how did you _tinker_ our path Zero?"

"Oh nothing much really~" Zero casually replied, "I just made things take longer…such as leading you through a long route without you really knowing it. The pool is one example." Zero slid his eyes across each of the guardians and continued, "I didn't really want to stop you from finding the exit, so I had my fun of slowing you down and making your adventure that much more interesting~!"

Narrowing her eyes at Zero, Esa glared. "I seriously hate you. You made me walk and breathe the same air as Kor-Rai for _that_ much longer."

Rai gave Esa an innocent puppy look. Esa skewered the look with a glare.

"Oh Esa-chan~" Zero said, "Hate is such a harsh word~"

"Fine," Esa retorted, "how about _I dislike you with a burning passion_?"

Zero's mouth twitched into a smile. "Seems like you have a smart mouth~"

Esa snorted.

"Anyways," Zero turned to look at the rest of the group, "it's almost time to begin. Are you guyr prepared?"

"Obviously not," Jasmine muttered.

"Hey wait a minute! We don't even know how to fight!" Crystal protested, "What are we suppose to do?"

"Hmhmhm~" Zero laughed. "Crystal-chan, fighting comes in many forms."

Crystal wrinkled her nose and said, "What the hell is that suppose to mean?...Actually, I don't care. I don't really know any form of real fighting, so whatever."

"But even so," Zero continued, "Shouldn't you at least know the basics of self-defense~?"

"Nope," Crystal bluntly answered, "Unless you count kicking guys in the balls."

Anrya sighed.

"Hmhmhm~" Zero chuckled, "Such weak children. Only four of the eight here can use their flame while the other four can't" Then glancing at Ryo, Zero added, "And one of the four who _can_ use their flame isn't even in middle school yet~"

Anrya slightly seethed at the fact Zero was scoffing at her choice of people. _Jerk_ she thought, gritting her teeth.

"Aw, Anrya-chan~" Zero purred, "Why the unhappy face?"

Anrya glared at Zero.

Smiling, Zero continued, "Well how about this: If at least one of the eight of you can stay conscious for the next ten minutes, which I will make the time limit of this fight, then you all pass. If not…" Zero gave a shrug and said, "…then sayonara~"

"Oh God," Anrya muttered. Then glancing up at Zero, Anrya gave a long look and questioned, "Why would you…eliminate us when you're the one who made me boss?"

Zero considered Anrya's words for a moment and answered, "'Boss' is just a title. You have to prove your worth in being boss, so what better way than to have a fight with me~? We can always find a new person fit enough to be boss if you fail." Then smiling again, Zero said, "Let's begin~!"

The lights in the large room dimmed and a thick mist began to settle in. The guardians, excluding Darke and Ryo, began to worriedly look around.

"Ah, I hate this," Anrya grumbled, "I can't even see my own hand in front of me."

_She's right _Jasmine thought as she lifted her hands up to her face. Her hands were still visible, but just barely.

"Hmhmhm~" came Zero's voice from somewhere in the mist. His voice couldn't be quite pinpointed but everyone turned to the general direction. "Since I'm so kind~" Zero said, his voice echoing, "I'll set up an invisible wall around the opened present so that you won't set off any traps…Hmhmhm~ I wouldn't want Anrya-chan's little guardians to be put out so quickly~"

"Sadist," Esa muttered.

Anrya scowled and thought grimly _Just like a cat who plays with its food before he kills and eats it…_

* * *

><p><strong>Crystal's P.O.V.<strong>

I blindly walked through the thick mist to find the others. _Tch, I should've just stayed where I was…then I wouldn't be lost in this mist…_ Continuing to navigate my way through the mist, I soon gave up after I began to feel like I was walking in circles. _Oh. My. God. Everything looks the same._ Annoyed, I just took a random direction. _Might as well…_ I thought. Still unable to see even a foot in front of where I was, I ended up walking straight into the invisible wall. "Ouch," I hissed irritably. Placing my hands on a wall I couldn't see, I cursed under my breath. "That bastard Zero…if he just got rid of this wall then I wouldn't have a problem." Then thinking back to the moment when Selina threw a piece of candy on a trap tile, I reconsidered _Well, maybe smashing into an invisible wall isn't as bad as getting shishkabobbed…_ Then, to make sure I wouldn't walk into the wall again, and to take out my anger (but mostly just to take my anger out), I kicked the invisible wall with disgust.

"Not the brightest thing to do, but expected from the likes of you~" said a voice to the right of me. I soon identified this voice to be Zero's.

Looking around for Zero, I called out, "What do you want?"

"Hos-tile," Zero said. "I just want to have a little chit-chat with you before you…take a nap~"

Attempting to sound undaunted, I snorted, "Why don't you get some friends." _Not that a creeper like you would find any…_

Ignoring my insult, Zero continued to talk. "Anyways, back to the wall. Why did you kick it~? What did it ever do to you?"

"You're making a pointless conversation," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Oh it's not pointless I assure you~" Zero answered. "Since I can kill some time by talking with you, this conversation isn't pointless…I wouldn't want to take out you and your friends so quickly~ That would be too boring~!"

_Oh, so that's it_ I glumly thought. _Might as well talk then…_ Uneasily glancing around, I crossed my arms. Clearing my throat, I attempted to sound indifferent and said, "Hmph, I'll go along with it then. To answer the other question, I kicked the wall because it bothered me."

"Hmhmhm~ How can a wall bother you~?" Zero questioned amusedly.

"It just did," I muttered.

"That's not such a detailed answer Crystal-chan~" Zero said.

"I don't have to give you a detailed answer," I answered back. Then pausing for Zero's next accusation, I waited…but it never came. Scowling, I then just answered, "The wall was in my way."

An amused snort sounded from Zero. "Yes, but it was there, unmoving, and _you_ were the one to smash into it," Zero pointed out.

_You sure have annoying ways to put things_ I thought. "Just shut up."

"Hmhmhm~ Then I guess our conversation will end here—". Then suddenly, Zero was behind me. Swiveling around, I was able to see Zero standing very close to me. Though the mist was very thick, I was still able to faintly see Zero's outline…especially his snow white hair and his mismatched eyes. A smile then played upon his lips and he swiftly advanced upon me. I started to back away, that is, until I felt a wall hit my back. _Oh shit!_ Turning to find a different route, I started to the right until an arm blocked my way. Looking to the owner of the arm, I gulped as I realized that I've been trapped.

"Don't worry Crystal-chan, I'll go easy on you~" Zero purred. So swift that my eyes couldn't follow, Zero injected something into my arm that soon took effect. My vision quickly began to dim and my balance faltered. Feeling weak in the knees, I sank to the ground and tried to stay conscious. "What did you do to me?" I asked, my words slurring.

"Oh~ I just gave you a very strong sedative," Zero said. Bending down, Zero smiled at me and said, "I have an appointment with your other friends now so… sweet dreams~" Standing up, Zero turned away from me and began to walk away. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was the flapping of Zero's black coat as he disappeared into the mist…

* * *

><p><strong>Rai's P.O.V.<strong>

"Wait up!" I cried out to Darke and Ryo who were walking in a quicker stride than me. The two completely ignored me and kept walking at the same pace. In efforts to try and keep up, I ran and caught up to them. "Hey Darke-kun, Ryo-kun, where are we going?"

The two stopped in their tracks and continued to stay silent. I was expecting them to answer my question but instead, Darke-kun tensed and looked around.

"What's wrong?" I asked Darke-kun. As usual, he didn't answer me. Sighing, I looked at the same direction that he was, to see what he was seeing. Squinting at the very thick mist, I saw nothing…wait…what was that flash of white that I saw? "Hey, what's that—" Before I could finish my sentence, Darke-kun jumped to the side and I felt a foot on my chest. "Oof!" I gasped. Falling on my back for the third time that day, I looked up to see a pair of mismatched eyes and snow white hair. It was Zero. "Ouch…um…excuse me Zero-san, can you get off of me so that I can breathe properly…please?"

Zero looked down at me but kept his foot on my chest. He then looked around; and when he set his sights on something, he used me as a stepping stone and swiftly disappeared.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow," I said repeatedly. Rubbing my sore chest, I slowly stood up to look for Darke-kun and Ryo. Lifting my head up, I said, "Hey Darke-kun do you—" No one was around. _Ah…I got ditched…_ With no one around, I aimlessly wandered for a while in random directions.

* * *

><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

I walked around in the thick mist unsure of what to do. Behind me were Jasmine, Selina, and Anrya. Luckily we stuck together since the thick mist settled in. Continuing to walk, I briefly looked over my shoulder and said to no one in particular, "Any fighting advices?"

"…Aim low…?" Anrya replied unsurely.

"I already know to aim for a guy's balls in self-defense, but I'm asking for _real_ fighting advice."

"Then I've got nothing," Anrya said with a shrug.

"Hey Anrya," Jasmine suddenly said, "Who were the four people that Zero mentioned with the flames?"

I took interest in this and listened carefully.

"Well…" Anrya started, "The four people are Darke, Selina, Ryo, and…me…"

"Wait a second," I cut in, "Then shouldn't you know how to fight?"

"Just because I can manifest my flame doesn't make me all-powerful," Anrya snorted. "No one taught me how to fight and my flame only lights up 40% of the time. The fact that I don't have a weapon with me right now puts me in a greater disadvantage."

"So basically, you're saying we're screwed right?" I said with a droll stare.

"Yep…" Anrya answered.

"But wait," Jasmine said, "What about Selina? You said she had a flame too."

Everyone turned to Selina. Selina uncomfortably met our gazes and said, "But…I don't have a flame…" Jasmine and I turned to Anrya and glared.

Shrugging, Anrya said, "Well, Selina can use illusions so basically it _can_ be considered a flame. Selina just can't form a flame yet without the proper materials. What Selina needs is a ring and a weapon."

"But Selina can still do _something_ right?" Jasmine said.

"Yeah, basically," Anrya answered with a shrug.

Jasmine and I turned to Selina. Opening my mouth I said, "So Selina, can you make some illusions to make us untouchable or something?"

"Mmmm…" Selina said with a shrug. "I'm not that advanced in illusions right now. The only times I've ever used my illusions was to make my manga book look like a notebook during social studies class, and to make my computer screen look different to outside viewers such as parents and teachers."

Jasmine and I hung our heads in defeat. _This is hopeless…_ I thought.

"Look on the bright side though guys," Anrya said in a cheerful voice, "If we can prolong this 'stage' until time is up, we'll be fine and pass."

"I hope so," I said with a sigh.

"Hey guys, is it just me or did the mist get slightly thinner?" Jasmine asked suddenly.

Squinting, I found that the mist _did_ get a bit thinner.

"You're right, the mist _did _get thinner." Selina commented, as she too observed the mist. Shrugging, Anrya, Selina, Jasmine and I continued to wander in the mist.

After a while, Anrya told me that we should stop to take a break. Agreeing with her, I stopped walking and sat down to rest my legs. Jasmine, Selina, and Anrya sat down as well. Around me, Anrya rested on the ground and Selina yawned. Yawning myself, I leaned back on my arms and closed my eyes.

Suddenly a sound of metal chains surrounded us.

_Huh?_ I thought a split-second before I felt the metal chains constricting me.

"What the—" I heard Jasmine gasp as she and the others were constricted with the chains as well.

"Hmhmhm~" came the annoying voice of Zero which I began to recognize well. "Hello ladies~" he purred.

_Ugh…_ I thought instinctively through his tone. _Another pervert…_

Zero walked up to us with a smirk. "I'm very disappointed…I was expecting a bit more of a fight, but I guess I expected too much."

I glared at Zero with hatred as he advanced to Selina with lithe steps. Watching him crouch down in front of Selina, I watched as Zero extended his hand out to Selina's cheek. At first, I thought he was petting her cheek, but then, Selina collapsed onto the floor unconscious. "Hey! What did you do to her you bastard," I called out, foolishly perhaps.

Zero got out of his crouch and turned his head towards me. Smiling ever so slightly he said, "I just hit one of her nerve clusters and made her fall unconscious."

I frowned. _What?_

Anrya coughed and said, "He means pressure point…"

"Oh…" I muttered.

Zero then began to advance towards me. _Oh shit…_ When he got in front of me, he crouched again and began to do the same as he did to Selina. _Oh no you don't…_ Just as Zero's hand got near my face, I opened my mouth and bit his hand. Hard. Zero didn't make much of a reaction, which disappointed me. All he did was look at his hand then back at me with a facial expression that said: _Really?_ To my astonishment, Zero's hand began to disintegrate into indigo sparkles. "Whaf da heck?" I said, with my teeth still clamped onto the remaining parts of Zero's hand. The part that I bit into soon began to disintegrate too. _I didn't bite THAT hard…_ I thought to myself, still dumbfounded. Looking over to the others, I noted Jasmine's facial expression of disbelief. Shrugging at Jasmine's facial expression, I looked around wondering where Zero was.

"Looking for me~?" said Zero in a seductive purr, near my ear.

_From behind?!_ Inclining my head slightly, I found that I was correct. Zero was behind, his lips by my ear and his arms around my shoulders as if we were pals. "Ugh, get off of me," I snapped, but unable to push him away due to the chains.

"Ah, ah, you forgot the special word~" Zero said.

"Die," I spat, curling my lips.

Zero frowned, but the frown quickly vanished. Instead, Zero smiled and pulled out a tranquilizer and prepared to stick it in me.

_Is that a big, long needle? _I thought with a slight chill.

Just as Zero was about to stick the tranquilizer dart into my arm, a high-pitched girly scream came from within the mist. All heads turned towards that direction to see…Rai running around frantically.

"Is that a three-headed dog chasing Rai, or am I just imagining things?" Jasmine asked with a frown.

"It's a three-headed dog chasing Rai," Anrya confirmed. "I think that's an illusion though…yep, it is."

"Wow that's…pathetic," I said. _But that idiot did just save me from getting a really long needle injected into me._

"Yeah," said Jasmine, "But then again, Kor-Rai's the one being chased by an imaginary giant three-headed dog so…"

Rai was getting closer as the three-headed dog chased him towards our direction. When he finally spotted us, he yelled, "HELP MEEEE!"

I gave him a droll stare. _Help YOU? Hello, I'm bound in chains and so are the others, not to mention Selina is out of commission…But I wouldn't want to help you anyways._

Rai seemed to notice the chains as he got even closer. Panicking, Rai ran towards us.

"Kor-Rai! What the hell are you doing!" I shouted. "Go run somewhere else, not here!"

"Isn't the three-headed dog just an illusion though?" Jasmine asked.

"Eeii! Any suggestions!" Rai shouted as he ran in circles with the dog at his heels.

"RUN. LIKE. HELL!" Anrya shouted.

"But I'm doing that!" Rai shouted back.

"Play dead?" Anrya suggested.

"I don't think that's a choice," I commented.

"Um guys, like I said, _isn't that three-headed dog just an illusion?_" Jasmine repeated.

"Oh yeah," I said after a moment's thought. "How do we escape this illusion though?"

"Not believe in it?" Anrya suggested.

"That's kind of hard to do…" Jasmine said.

"It's worth a try though—"

"Looks like I'll just have to end his pathetic misery~" Zero said from behind me. I had totally forgotten that he was there. Turning my head to face him, he met my eyes and gave me a smile. "Of course Esa-chan, ladies first~" Zero quickly stuck the dart in my arm and left my side.

I started feeling woozy. _Wow, this drug is really strong…_ My body began to weaken and soon I had slumped over to the side, the chains still constricting me. I was facing Zero and Rai while lying on the floor. Vision beginning to flicker, the last thing I heard and saw was Zero taking down Rai and laughing…

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya P.O.V.<strong>

To my right was an unconscious Selina and now, to my far left was an unconscious Esa. _Crap…_ Now that Zero had finished off Rai, Jasmine and I were the next targets. Beside me Jasmine gulped audibly. _Scary, metal chain no exist…Scary, metal chain no exist…Scary, metal chain no exist…DAMMIT! STUPID METAL CHAIN DISAPPEAR!_ I thought. I soon panicked as Zero neared and waiting for my doom, I was flabbergasted when the chains fell to the ground. _Did my will power work?_ Looking up, I was just in time to see Darke attacking Zero and Zero defending himself. _Nope. Definitely not my will power…_

"I must say, that was pretty good—" Zero said.

"—But not good enough," continued Zero…the real one. The Zero that Darke attacked disappeared and the real one ran at him.

Jasmine and I, now free, stood and observed the scene. Jasmine turned to me and asked, "What do we do now?"

"Walk away really slowly and disappear?" I suggested.

"I want to do that, but I'll feel bad for leaving Darke behind," Jasmine said.

"Really?"

"No," she answered, "Let's go…Darke seems to be holding his own fine. If we could kill some time, then this should be over…"

"Good idea." We both began to walk away when two long daggers came whizzing past us. Hairs on end, we both turned around to see Zero momentarily grinning at us.

"Where are you ladies going~?" he purred.

_Somewhere where it's safe_ I thought.

Zero and Darke continued to fight each other. Darke ran at Zero and aimed a kick for his head. Zero smoothly caught the kick and tossed it aside. Darke fell, but quickly recovered. Now this time Zero attacked first. Throwing an upper cut to Darke's stomach Darke was tossed back once more. As Darke fell to his knees, he started to stand up again when Zero's illusionary chains tied him down. Darke scowled. He struggled to break free from the chains but was unable to.

"Hmhmhm~" Zero laughed. When he got to Darke, he snapped back his arm and punched Darke square in the jaw. Zero's fist impacted Darke's jaw with a smash and Darke slumped over.

"Five down, three to go," Zero sadistically purred.

_Ah shit_ I thought grimly. _Wait, three more?_ Looking around, I was able to spot Ryo idly standing to my right. Following my gaze, Zero spotted Ryo as well. Giving a smile, Zero ran at Ryo. Alarmed, I ran at Ryo too. Thankfully, I was closer to Ryo. If I wasn't, Zero would've outrun me. Reaching Ryo, I grabbed and held him tight as I felt the impact of Zero's feet on my back. Falling on the floor with Ryo, I tried to quickly recover and get us farther away from Zero. Standing back up and backing away, I drew close to Jasmine. "Anyway we can escape him and kill some time?"

"I don't know," Jasmine grimly answered.

Biting my lips I racked my brain. Looking around for an answer, I saw from within the mist, a purple light. _Huh?_ I soon found out that the light was a concentrated beam of flames that Zero released. How do I know? Well, I got hit by it and so did Jasmine and Ryo. It wasn't fun. The power of this attack was pretty intense for us and it threw us back very far. We went flying so far that we hit the invisible wall. "Oof!" Gasping in the impact, the three of us fell to the ground.

"My, my, what a shame~" I heard Zero say from a distance. I couldn't see him due to the thick mist. "You still have forty five seconds left…but I doubt you'll stay conscious for that long~"

I hated to admit it, but I knew that we weren't going to last that long. _Dammit! We were so close…_ I thought. Ryo squirmed slightly in front of me. I was able to cushion his impact to the wall, but he still took a lot of damage from the beam of flames. _Dammit!_ I thought again. My vision blurred and I soon fell into darkness.

* * *

><p><strong>Hm imagine if Zero was a real person o3o...*shiver* XD<strong>


	9. Did We Lose?

_**Disclaimer:**_** No matter how much I wish I was Akira...I'm not...so KHR is not mine -.-**

* * *

><p>Anrya woke with a start. "Ugh," she groaned as she sat up in her bed. Reaching for her glasses, Anrya put them on and stretched out her limbs. <em>Ow<em>. Anrya felt her bruised side. _That blast from Zero hurts like a mother…_ Then, she froze. _Wait, I'm in my bed, in my room, all safe and sound…_ Most fictional characters by this point would've thought that the past nightmarish events were all a dream. Not Anrya. She had a good sense of reality. Frowning, Anrya quickly got out of bed and went to her bathroom. Looking at the bathroom mirror, Anrya scanned her appearance. _Messy hair, slightly dirtied shirt, bruised side…yep, that fight with Zero happened alright._ Exiting the bathroom, Anrya was back in her room again. _I need to shower._ Picking out the clothes she wanted to wear, Anrya went to take a shower.

_-Fifteen minutes later-_

"Ah~" Anrya sighed, feeling refreshed. Putting on her clothes then drying her hair, Anrya was soon on her way downstairs. Walking down from the second floor (which was the girls' floor), Anrya stopped in her steps. She pondered for a moment if she should check on the others, but thought better of it and proceeded downstairs into the kitchen. _What the—_ she thought. In front of her, Anrya was met with an unexpected sight of Zero drinking tea and eating toast in her kitchen.

Turning his head, Zero met Anrya's eyes and smiled. "Good morning Anrya-chan~ Had a good night sleep~?"

"I'm not even going answer that," Anrya said.

Zero chuckled. "Want some toast~?" Held in his hand was a piece of toast that was stabbed through by a silver fork.

"Um, no thanks…I'll stick with cereal." Anrya went and got a spoon, a bowl, some milk, and cereal. Uncertainly, Anrya walked over to the table Zero was sitting in and sat there as well. For a good five minutes, Anrya ate her cereal in awkward silence. Then, unable to bare the silence any longer, Anrya started a conversation. "So Zero, what's going on right now?"

"Hmm~?" Zero mumbled with the toast in his mouth. "What specifically~?"

_Tch, you know what I'm talking about Zero_ Anrya thought. "About the final stage where we fought you. You know, the one we…failed. What I want to know is what you're going to do with us. You told us in the beginning that you were going to …eliminate us if we failed, and we did." Anrya gulped. "So, what's gonna happen?"

Zero nonchalantly leaned back on his chair which was now balancing on two legs. "Ah about that~" Zero finished eating his toast and continued. "We'll speak about that when all of your guardians are here~"

Feeling a sense of foreboding and dread, Anrya continued to finish her breakfast. Glancing at the kitchen clock, which said that it was 8:48am, Anrya grimaced. _It's gonna be a long day…_

* * *

><p>Stirring out of sleep, Esa opened her eyes to the sun's rays coming through the window. Blinded for a moment, Esa shielded her eyes with her hand. When her eyes finally adjusted, she turned her head to the side to take a look around…and froze. Inches away from her own face was Rai's sleeping face. <em>What the heck?<em> Esa thought, recoiling,_ Rai's like basically on top of me!_ Ok, maybe that wasn't true. Yes, there were side bars that separated Esa's bed from Rai's, but still, Rai was too close for Esa's comfort. Moving her body away from the edge, Esa sat up and looked around for her glasses. Then finding them, she put them on.

"Oh, it seems like you're awake," said a voice from behind.

From a now-forming habit of hearing Zero's voice pop out of nowhere, Esa whirled around in her bed to see the person behind her. Unexpectedly, it wasn't Zero. "Who are you—" Esa started to say, but then recalled this person from somewhere in her memory. _A flying projectile (which was a water bottle) that hit my face, two people at the top of the stairs, Ace mentioned their names…_ "Uh…you're Gray right? Or…Gris?"

"Gray," the person confirmed. "Gris is my twin brother."

"Ok," Esa mumbled. Then glancing at Rai, Esa questioned, "Why am I in the same room as Rai?"

The girl, Gray, raised an eyebrow. "Got a complaint?"

Esa noted Gray's frosty tone and remembered that she was like that when they first met. "Um well, I'm a girl and Rai's a guy so shouldn't we be in separate rooms?"

"Are you naked?" Gray asked to Esa's unpleasant shock.

"No."

"Are you diseased?"

"Uh…no."

"Then there should be no problem in you being in the same room as Rai."

"But, we're like, in bed and stuff," Esa mumbled.

"So?"

"It's awkward sleeping next to a guy," Esa said with a slight cough.

"You're not sleeping now are you?"

Esa shook her head.

"Then suck it up and deal with it," Gray said, rolling her eyes. "In school you're in the same room as a guy, in a restaurant you're in a same room as a guy, heck, a day ago you were in the same room with _this_ guy. So I don't see what your problem is."

_You don't understand_ Esa thought.

Gray seemed to follow Esa's thought. "Well, you're not the only one here."

Esa looked around to her other side. While to the left of her there was Rai, to the right there was Jasmine, Crystal, Selina, Ryo… _Where's Anrya and Darke?_ Esa turned back to Gray and gave her a questioning look.

"Darke woke up earlier and said he would be going out to…he didn't mention…" Gray trailed off.

"And you didn't question or stop him?" Esa asked Gray with a look.

"Not my problem," Gray answered with a shrug.

"And what about Anrya?"

"She was brought to her room."

"Wait! Then why couldn't you have brought me to my room?"

Gray gave Esa a stare. "I didn't know which one was your room since none of you chose a room, and plus no way am I going through different floors to check up on all eight of you."

"Well, you could've at least put some space between us…and if you hate going through different floors, why is Anrya in her room? Wouldn't it be easier to keep her here?"

Gray rolled her eyes. "Just be thankful that I watched over you while you were knocked out."

Beside her, Jasmine stirred and woke up. "You guys are already arguing?"

"Ugh," Crystal muttered as she too, woke up. "You guys are so loud; I'm trying to sleep here…"

"Oh look, little miss sunshine woke up," Gray said sarcastically. "Good morning princess~"

Crystal glared at Gray through narrowed, sleepy eyes.

Gray just ignored Crystal and clapped her hands. "Since everyone is starting to wake up…I'll wake the others…"

"Five more minutes…" Crystal mumbled going back to sleep.

"Too late," Gray said. She pulled out an air horn…

"Oh shit," Esa said, covering her ears.

…and pulled the trigger. **BLAAAAAAAAARE!**

"Agh," Esa said, wincing.

"What the hell!" Crystal growled.

"Oh my God, what the heck…my ears," Jasmine said in annoyance.

Selina awoke with a groan.

"AAAHHH!" Rai woke up to the sound of the air horn.

Ryo silently woke up and covered his ears.

Gray smiled in sadistic satisfaction and said, "Good morning ladies and gentlemen~"

Most of the people in the room gave her a death glare. "Love you too guys," Gray said. "Anyways, since we're all awake, let's all pretty ourselves up. We're currently on the ground floor, but you guys need to pick your rooms, take a shower and dress up. Your bags were placed on your proper floor and all you need to do is pick it up and choose a frickin' room…are we clear? And oh yeah, after that, come to the kitchen for some breakfast and a little social time with Zero-san, ok?"

Yesterday's battle came to everyone's minds in a rush. Everyone went silent for a moment and then grimly began to walk upstairs. Gray smirked and shook her head. At that moment, Darke silently entered the room. "Hmph, it looks like mister dark and silent came. Do you know what to do?" Darke just ignored Gray which she took as a yes. All the boys and girls, excluding Anrya, went to their designated floors to pick up their stuff and choose a room.

* * *

><p>On the second floor (which was the girls' floor), there were six rooms in total—three rooms on the right hand side of the long hallway, and three rooms on the left. Each room had its own bathroom. Anrya's room was the room closest to the staircase on the right hand side. Each girl chose their rooms quickly. Jasmine chose the room next to Anrya's room (right-hand side middle), Esa chose the room next to Jasmine's (right-hand side end), Selina chose the room across from Anrya's (left-hand side near the staircase), and Crystal chose the room besides Selina's (left-hand side middle), which left the last end room empty. In their rooms, all the girls unpacked their things and cleaned themselves up.<p>

The three boys' rooms were on the third floor. Just as the girls, there were six rooms in total. "Wow! I almost forgot how grand this place was!" Rai exclaimed. Then turning to Darke and Ryo he asked, "Darke-kun, what do _you_ think about this place?"

Darke plainly ignored Rai and walked past him, hands in his pocket. Darke went all the way to the end of the hallway and chose the room on the left. Ryo went into the room next to Darke (left-hand side middle) and closed the door.

Rai stood there in silence. His room was the one near the staircase on the right. Rai sighed as he went into his room and closed the door.

* * *

><p><em>Where are those people!<em> Anrya thought as she uncomfortably sat with Zero. Glancing at the clock for the millionth time, she saw that it was a little past ten. _It's been almost two hours since I came here for breakfast…_ Anrya thought.

Zero, still sitting across from her said, "Hmm~ It's been an hour since those guardians of yours went up to their rooms…"

Anrya just muttered, "Yeah," and went silent again.

"Well, more quality time for you and me, Anrya-chan~" Zero said with a wink.

_Go away, go away, go away…_ Anrya just thought, willing Zero to just exit her home…but of course that didn't happen.

"Have some cake Anrya-chan~" Zero purred. He passed a plate, a fork, and a knife to Anrya and brought out some cake. He cut a big slice for himself and a medium slice for Anrya. Putting the cake in the fridge, Zero went back to his seat and started to enjoy his cake.

_Might as well…_ Anrya thought, picking up the fork and knife. A while later, the two people finished eating their cakes.

From outside the kitchen, the shuffling of feet could be heard.

"Ah~" Zero said, "It seem as though our little guardians are coming down the stairs…they'll be here any moment~"

As Zero had said, the four girls and three boys soon entered the kitchen. Just like how Anrya had reacted when she first entered the kitchen, most of the guardians seemed flabbergasted to see Zero leaning back on his chair with a silver fork in his mouth. Anrya on the other hand, was sitting quietly in her seat with her left hand on the fork and right hand on the knife. Tightening her grip on the fork and knife, Anrya envisioned herself skewering the entering people. _Relax Anrya_ she thought to herself _bad thoughts lead to bad actions…It wasn't their fault that they woke up late and got you stuck with Zero for almost two hours…_

"Good morning everyone~" Zero said with a smile.

"Hi," everyone sort of muttered.

Anrya waved her hand and motioned them to take a seat. Everyone chose a seat though Ryo and Darke were the only ones brave enough to sit next to Zero. Taking the silver fork out of his mouth and twirling it in his hands, Zero said, "Let's begin shall we~?"

Everyone sat still in their seats to hear what their 'elimination' will be like. Will it be death? Will it be torture? Will it be another fight? Will it be punishment? With anticipation and dread in the air, everyone waited to see what Zero's next words would be.

"As you can see…" Zero started, "You all passed~"

"Eh?" Esa said in confusion. At the same time Anrya said, "What?"

"Someone slap me," Rai said, still not believing Zero's words.

"I'll do just that," Esa said, getting into slapping position. She then proceeded to slap Rai multiple times.

"YOWCH!" Rai yelped.

"That's enough Esa, Rai just asked for a slap…not physical abuse," Anrya said.

"Well, he kinda deserved it if you ask me" Esa said with a shrugged.

"Why, because he's in the same room as you?" Gray came walking into the room along with her twin brother Gris. Ace entered as well.

In hearing Gray's sarcastic voice, Esa rolled her eyes. "Whatever…"

"Did you say something?" Gray sharply said.

"Yo guys, shut up, I wanna hear about how we passed that test," Jasmine said.

"Me too," Anrya added. Everyone turned to Zero and waited.

"Hmmm~? Why don't we have your little guardians eat first~?" Zero said.

Anrya opened her mouth to protest, but closed it. It was already past ten o' clock and the others hadn't eaten. Sighing, Anrya got up to prepare some breakfast. "Anyone want toast?"

* * *

><p>Everyone had finished breakfast by now (10:45am), and now they were all gathered in the living room area.<p>

"So Zero, you gonna say something?" Anrya impatiently asked.

"Hmhmhm~ I'll begin then," Zero began. "First of all, let's thank all those people who helped make this test: Me, Ace, Ren, and…some other people who helped build this~!" Zero clapped and so did Ace. No one else clapped…just death glared.

Gray whistled. "Feeling the love~"

"Who's Ren?" Crystal asked.

"Well Crystal-chan, he's not here right now, but someday I'll introduce him to you~" Zero said. "Anyways, I'll begin…"

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK*<strong>

_Zero shot out a beam of concentrated cloud flames out of the palm of his hand at the direction of the three escapees. "Hmhmhm~" The sound of impact could be heard as the three: Anrya, Jasmine, and Ryo, were flung at the invisible wall behind them._

"_Oof!" Anrya gasped from a distance. _

_Zero smiled. "My, my, what a shame~ You still have forty five seconds left…but I doubt you'll stay conscious for that long~" Zero glanced at the timer he strapped to his wrist: thirty five seconds left. "Hm~" To make sure he had efficiently finished his job, Zero quickly went around, checking that each person was still unconscious. After checking most of the guardians, Zero came back to Anrya, Jasmine, and Ryo to check on them. Nearing them, Zero checked each pulse. Anrya was down, Jasmine was down, Ryo was down…wait! Zero frowned as he observed Ryo. He was unconscious but…an illusion! Zero 'tched' as he figured out Ryo's simple trick. Zero searched around to find Ryo. It wasn't long till he found him. Ryo was limping away as best as he could…probably to escape or kill some time. Zero prepared to shoot another beam from his palm, when the timer on his wrist beeped to signal the end of the ten minutes… "How lucky~"_

***END OF FLASHBACK***

* * *

><p>"That's how we passed?" Jasmine asked.<p>

"Wow…" Anrya said, speechless.

Everyone turned to Ryo with amazement.

"You guys got so lucky," Gray commented with a snicker.

"Yes, it seems so," Gris said, speaking for the first time. "From observing their skill level and experience, they only had an approximate 3% chance to pass."

"Wow," Anrya said again.

Ace opened his mouth to talk. "Zero, I think now is a good time to discuss _those_ things with them."

"Ah yes~" Zero said, clapping his hand. Turning to the others he said, "Let's discuss what your family name will be, so that you can be an official family."

Everyone looked around at each other, clueless. After an awkward moment of silence, Ace cleared his throat and said, "How about the 'New Family'? In Italian it would be 'Nuovo Famiglia'."

"Um…not quite loving that name…" Anrya said with a cringe.

"Why does it have to be in Italian?" Rai questioned.

"Because most mafia families originated in Italy," Anrya answered.

"Isn't there the Japanese mafia too?" Rai asked again.

"Well…" Anrya trailed off. "Let's just stick to the Italian mafia."

"I don't know Italian though…" Crystal commented.

Selina took out her iPhone. "Google Translate Crystal, Google Translate…"

"Good idea." Crystal took out her iPod and connected to the Wi-Fi in the mansion. Jasmine and Esa followed.

"Hey, how about the 'Awesome Family'?" Rai suggested.

"Can you translate that to Italian?" Jasmine asked.

"No," Rai answered. "But I'm sure someone else can."

"No," Anrya said firmly. "Though the word 'awesome' _is_ awesome, it's not fitting for our family…not that anyone here _isn't _awesome…"

"Awww…how come you get to decide~" Rai whined.

"I'm your boss," Anrya said. "But since just saying that is a bit snobby, let's do this: Those _not _in favor of the family name 'Awesome Family' raise your hand."

Zero, Ace, Gray, Gris, Anrya, Jasmine, Esa, Selina, Ryo, and Darke lifted their hands.

"See," Anrya said. "Well, Zero and Ace aren't part of the family, but it would still be the majority."

"How about the 'Crystal Family'?" Crystal asked.

Every head turned to her direction.

"We are _so_ not going to name this family after _you_," Jasmine said.

"What do you think about the 'Dispari Famiglia'?" Anrya suggested, "It means 'Odd Family'. It's quite fitting…"

Some people shrugged and nodded in approval.

"How about 'Pericoloso Famiglia'?" Selina asked typing things into Google Translate. "It means 'Dangerous Family'."

Gray bursted out laughing, Anrya cringed, and Zero chuckled.

"Dangerous?" Gray said laughing, "You guys are _hardly_ dangerous. You're all just like kittens or butterflies."

"Kittens have claws," Esa pointed out. "As for butterflies, you can touch them and them rub your eyes and become blind…"

Gray gave Esa a droll stare.

"What? It's true~" Esa innocently said.

"Not to lower your self-esteem, but you wouldn't even be able to lay a _finger_ on _me_," Gray snorted.

Anrya leaned over on the couch and poked Gray. "_Touch_." Grinning at Gray, Anrya said, "Sorry Gray, I couldn't resist~"

Gray narrowed her eyes on Anrya. "If it wasn't for the fact that you're my boss, you're somewhat respectable, and that I was seventeen years old and mature, I might've slapped you for being annoying."

Anrya apologetically shrugged, but a grin remained on her face.

"Ok we're getting off topic guys," Ace intervened, "Let's go back to the family name."

"How about we do a ballot?" Anrya suggested. "From the suggested family names, we'll vote on which one we want…anymore family name suggestions?" Everyone shook their heads. "Ok then, let me go get some pens, paper slips, and a hat…" Anrya disappeared for a while and then came back with the said items. Handing a pen and paper to each family member, Anrya waited for them to fill it out. She herself filled it out too. After everyone was done, Anrya collected the papers and pens, and put the papers into the hat. Shaking the hat a bit, Anrya pulled each slip of folded papers one by one. Anrya read the papers out loud.

"The first one: **Crystal. 'Crystal Famiglia'…but since you're probably gonna say no, I'll stick with 'Pericoloso Famiglia'.**

The second one: **Me. 'Dispari Famiglia'**

The third one: **Esa. My first choice is 'Pericoloso' but 'Dispari' sounds good too.**

The fourth one: **Selina. I don't really mind, but the best ones are 'Dispari' and 'Pericoloso'**

The fifth one: **Jasmine. 'Pericoloso' We're all scary in our own ways.**

The sixth one: **Rai. The 'Awesome Family'!**"

Anrya turned her head to Rai and said, "That wasn't exactly a valid choice but I'll go with it…"

"The seventh one: **Gray. Since there's no kick-ass names, I'll stick with 'Pericoloso' or 'Dispari'. **

The eighth one: **Ryo. **-Blank-

The ninth one: **Darke. I don't have time for childish games.**

The tenth one: **Gris. From the given selection, I would say that the name 'Dispari' is the most fitting for our family.**

And that's it…" Anrya finished. "From the votes, I would say that 'Pericoloso Famiglia' won. It came up first the most…"

"I can't believe I have to live with that ridiculous family name," Gray muttered.

"Then we'll just have to live up to that name," Anrya genuinely, but seriously said.

"Hmhmhm~ I guess it's decided then," Zero said. Getting up from his seat, Zero sighed and said, "Well then, let's just relax for the rest of the day, and tomorrow we'll go over more of the formal procedures~"

Zero motioned for Ace and walked out of the living room. Following him, Ace left as well. From outside the living room, the sound of the front door opening and closing resounded. After they had left the mansion, everyone stood up and dispersed to their rooms.

* * *

><p>"This is awesome!" Crystal shouted as she walked into the lounge area for the girls' floor.<p>

"Yeah," Anrya said, smiling. "If you remembered from my tour, there's also some other rooms for studying, conferences, guests…"

"I like it here." Esa sighed and plopped down onto a cushioned chair.

"Everything on the right side of the stairs are our private quarters," Anrya informed, "and everything on the left side is more open to everyone…"

"Do the guys have the same thing?" Selina asked curiously.

"Mm-hm~" Anrya replied. Looking around and picking up the TV remote, Anrya passed it to Crystal and said, "For now, let's just relax. I have a feeling that tomorrow's gonna be a long day…"

"Oh yay," Crystal sarcastically muttered. Then she clicked the remote and turned on the TV.

* * *

><p><strong>Review pweeese o3o<strong>


	10. Frammenti Rings

**_Disclaimer: _[Insert Disclaimer here]**

* * *

><p><em>Yawn.<em> Rai woke up to the sunlight that streamed through his window. _Is it time for school already? Wait…_ Rai looked around the room that was not his own and remembered where he was. "Oh, this place…" Rai mumbled, half-awake. Getting out of bed, Rai stretched his limbs and shook himself out of sleep. Walking to his bathroom and taking a quick wash, Rai came out to change into some casual clothing. He wore a simple green T-shirt that matched his highlights, and a pair of jeans. _Ah~ Now for breakfast…_ Stepping out of his room, Rai paused a moment and looked over to Darke and Ryo's rooms. Deciding to inform the two for breakfast, Rai walked over to Darke's room first with a smile on his face. When he got there, he threw Darke's door open without even a knock, and said, "Good morning D—" The door to Darke's room slammed shut. "Uh…Darke-kun?...Are you coming to breakfast?"

"I already ate," replied Darke rather dismissively.

"Ah…ok," Rai stammered. Then becoming cheery once more, Rai said goodbye, and went to the room next door which was Ryo's. Flinging open the door to Ryo's room, Rai sang, "Good morning Ryo-kun~!" but was met with silence._ Huh, Ryo-kun must be downstairs already…_ Giving a shrug, Rai closed the room door and headed downstairs.

Entering the kitchen area, Rai's stomach growled. He had been expecting to see many of the people there, but was surprised to see only Crystal and Selina eating. Smiling, Rai greeted the two. "Good morning Selina-chan, Crystal-chan~!"

"Mmm…" Selina answered.

Rai wasn't sure what 'Mmm' was (cause she could've been saying something else due to either: a full mouth, a quiet personality, or sleepiness), but he took it as a good reply to his 'good morning'.

"Hey," Crystal answered, with a momentary glance.

"Hm…where are the others?" Rai asked, looking around, "Are they still sleeping?"

"No, they already ate…it's past 10am you know," Crystal replied. "They're probably chillin' in the living room…"

Rai gave a shrug and slid into a chair. "Wow! The breakfast looks delicious~ Who made it?"

"We did," said Gray, who suddenly walked in. "I made the pancakes, the waffles, and the toast, Gris made the scrambled eggs, the sausages, and the potatoes, and Anrya made the omelet, chopped some fruits, took out the cereal, took out the drinks, and set the table. Be thankful."

Rai licked his lips and happily said, "Itadakimasu~!"

"Yeah, ok," Gray said, "Just make sure to clean your own dishes and stuff."

Rai nodded, as did Crystal and Selina. Then Rai enjoyed his breakfast.

* * *

><p>After finishing his breakfast, Rai walked into the living room with Crystal and Selina, and saw the rest of the family there (except Darke of course).<p>

"Hm, oh, good morning guys," Anrya said, looking up from a book.

"Looking good today Anrya-chan~" Rai complimented.

Anrya glanced at her V-neck shirt and shorts, and raised an eyebrow, and turned to Rai saying, "Thanks."

Rai smiled. "Of course…" Rai said, turning to Esa and Jasmine (who sat at a sofa to his right) as well as Selina and Crystal, "Everyone looks nice here too~"

"Meh—" Esa started, but noticing Rai was the one speaking, she gave a glare and turned away.

"'Kay," Jasmine replied, without even a glance.

"Um…ok…" Crystal said.

"Mmm…thanks," Selina answered.

Ryo, who remained unnoticed, just sat in his cushioned chair and blinked blankly at Rai. Anrya closed her book and stood up. "Well, since we're all here…well, except for Darke, let's check each other's' rooms out. It'll be fun. I have things to show you guys anyways." Everyone followed along.

* * *

><p>The first stop Anrya made was the second floorgirls' floor. Each girl showed their room a bit to the others. Everyone gave good comments and opinions on the rooms. Rai especially liked Crystal's bright yellow room and Jasmine's outside view. When everyone got to Esa's room, Esa quickly popped out and blocked her room door. "Wait a minute," she said. "Let me have a minute to clean my room…"

"Just open the door," Crystal said, "No one will really cares for a little mess. My room was a bit messy, but no one cared."

"Your room was a bit messy because you had scattered items on the floor and an unmade bed. My room has scattered clothing."

"C'mon Esa," Jasmine said, "It won't be bad. My pajamas were out and my socks were on the ground. I'm pretty sure your room is a bit neater than mine."

"Erg…I have _certain_ articles of clothing I would like to put away before anyone or any _perv_ enters my room." Esa pointedly stared at Rai who stared back her in confusion.

"Oh," Jasmine said.

"Heh? Why am I the perv?" Rai asked, "It's not like I did anything…"

"Yes you did," Esa said.

"What?"

"First of all," Esa started, "You checked me out at the airport, you keep on calling my name creepily, and you always looked towards my direction!"

Anrya frowned. "How does that make him a perv?"

"It's perverted," Esa bluntly replied.

"Oh c'mon Esa," Jasmine said, "All guys are a bit perverted, so you can't really judge him that way."

"Jas-chan is right," Rai said.

"—Wait, did you just give me a nickname?" Jasmine cut in.

"Yep~" Rai answered.

"…ok."

Turning back to Esa again, Rai said, "Jeez Esa-chan, just because I checked you out once, called your name 'creepily' (though in Japan putting 'chan' after a girl's name isn't incorrect), and looked towards your direction doesn't make me a big pervert. Yes, I can be a bit 'perverted' at times, but that won't change anything, or do anything~"

"So…can I clean my room a bit?" Esa asked again to the others, ignoring Rai.

"Fine," Anrya sighed, "just hurry."

"Seeing your clothing isn't such a big deal…" Rai mumbled indignantly, "though," Rai shot Esa a sly teasing glance, "a little sneak peek at Esa-chan's clothing wouldn't be so bad~"Everyone (besides Esa) cracked at least a smile to Rai's comment. Esa just glared. She then went into her room to clean a bit.

"Well in the meantime," Anrya said, "let me show you guys a new installation. Everyone turn to the left and go down to the end of the hall." Everyone went to the said direction. The guardians stood in front of a blank wall and…just stood there.

"Ah…Anrya-chan, what are you trying to show us?" Rai asked, confused. Not answering, Anrya just walked up to the wall and placed a hand on it. A door suddenly materialized on the wall.

"Woah," Crystal said, "that wasn't there before, was it?"

"No, it got installed last night while you guys were sleeping."

"That's so cool!" Rai exclaimed.

"Yeah it's cool, but…what's it for?" Jasmine questioned.

Smiling Anrya said, "Why don't you see for yourself?"

Shrugging, Jasmine walked over to the door, opened it…and stepped into open air…_almost_. "What the—!" Double taking, Jasmine jumped backwards away from the opening, which led to a two-story drop. Recovering from the shock, Jasmine turned to Anrya and gave her a look. "Are you trying to frickin' kill me Anrya?"

"Nah. If I was, you wouldn't be on the second floor right now," Anrya nonchalantly replied. Jasmine continued to give Anrya a look.

"What?" said Anrya.

"I feel endangered," replied Jasmine.

"Anrya," said Selina speaking for first time, "can you please explain the point of this door to us."

"Well…" Anrya started, "it can be used as an emergency exit, an opening for certain devices, a door to jump out of when you're bored…" Anrya trailed off.

"But wouldn't we die if we jumped out of that door?" asked Rai.

"You won't always die from a two-story drop baka." Everyone turned around to a voice that belonged to Esa.

"Wow that was quick…when did you get here?" Jasmine asked.

"A while ago," Esa replied with a shrug.

"Well," Anrya said, "seeing how Esa is here now and how I'm done showing you the door…let's go check out Esa's room."

Everyone went into Esa's room and observed. Esa's room wasn't anything special, so after a while, everyone was out again. "Now then." Anrya started, "since we saw all the girls' room, let's check out the boys'. Rai, would you lead?"

"Sure," Rai replied. He led them all upstairs to the third floor/ boys' floor.

Turning from the staircase, Rai first pointed out the rooms that each boy was in. "The room closest to us on the right is my room," Rai said, "The middle and far rooms on the left belongs to Ryo-kun and Darke-kun~"

"Wow," Selina commented, "you guys are far apart."

"It's like I can see the imaginary line that separates you from Darke and Ryo," Jasmine said. "The line division is like between the right and left side, plus the closest rooms from the middle and far rooms…"

"Yep," Anrya agreed, "totally feeling the love here." Rai gave a lopsided grin and shrugged.

"Speaking of Ryo, where is he?" Esa asked.

From the backside of the group, a hand was raised. That hand tapped Esa on the back. "Hm?...Woah, I forgot he was with us the whole time," Esa said, seeing Ryo.

"…."

"C'mon," Rai motioned, "let me show my room~!" Then turning to Ryo he said, "You can show your room too, Ryo-kun!" Ryo nodded in reply. After Rai and Ryo (but mostly Rai) showed their rooms to everyone, they finally arrived at Darke's room. The door to Darke's room was closed and his room was silent.

"Do you think we should go in?" Anrya asked with a glance. "I mean he could be sleeping, judging from the silence."

Selina shrugged and said, "You can always knock first."

Anrya agreed with Selina and did just that. Anrya knocked on Darke's door and waited. "…" No one answered even after a few seconds passed. Growing slightly impatient, Anrya decided to say something. "We're coming in Darke, hope you don't mind." Anrya opened the door to Darke's room and stepped in. The room was empty however, as Anrya and the others observed.

"Eh…where did he go?" Crystal asked.

Everyone just shrugged, but scanned the room.

"Anrya-chan!" Rai called, "Do you think it's possible for Darke-kun to have gone out the window?"

Anrya turned to look at the open window and billowing curtains and considered the thought. "Well considering his profile and ability, and his skills…I would say that it's possible." Walking over to the window, Anrya stuck her head out and looked all ways.

Rai walked over to see what Anrya was doing. After a miute of staring out the window, Anrya brought her head back in. "I think Darke is on the fourth floor/library."

"Heh? How is that possible Anrya-chan?" Rai questioned.

"Well he either scaled the wall or hopped onto that tree." Anrya pointed to a strong and sturdy oak tree that was close, but not close enough for comfort.

"That's impossible!" Rai said in disbelief.

Anrya shook her head. "It's not that the task is impossible, it's just not safe…"

"Wow…either that guy is Spiderman, or he's just ninja," Jasmine commented.

"Anyways," Anrya said, clearing her throat, "let's go to Darke's location and retrieve him. He always seems to be detached from us." Anrya led the way out of the room, down the hall, and to the stairs. She was prepared to lead the group upstairs when a sudden "Wait—!" came from down the stairs. Anrya, as did the others, turned to see who it was. Gray hair tied low, with protective eyewear and lab coat on, the person came running up the stairs.

"Oh hello Gray-san!" Rai said with a smile and a wave.

When the person go to the top of the stairs and caught a breath, the person said, "I'm Gris, not Gray, Rai-kun," said Gris with a slight huff.

"Ah, sorry Gris-san," apologized Rai, "It's just that you and Gray-san look so alike, gray eyes, hair and all…"

"Yes that is true," Gris said, "but take into account that I am a male, not a female, and my voice is about a pitch lower than my twin sister Gray's."Rai nodded.

"…Anrya," Selina suddenly said, "Out of curiosity, who built that door on the second floor, and how did we not hear it being built last night?"

"Huh, I didn't hear it either~" Rai commented.

"Well," Crystal said, "you were on the third floor."

"Yeah, but construction like that should've been heard even on other floors," Esa said. "I'm pretty sure cutting a hole in the wall should've made some noise."

"…."

"Well in fact," Gris said, "Gray and I built that door."

Everyone looked at Gris.

"May I explain the details?" Gris asked.

"I know you love explaining the technical stuff, so sure," Anrya said.

Gris nodded in appreciation and started. "That door on the second floor was built with the strongest, yet the lightest metal we could find. Adding some digital properties to it, we were able to get it to camouflage and respond to handprints…As for how you didn't hear the construction last night; that's simple." Gris pulled out a device as well as some peculiar looking pellets that went along with it. "These are what we call 'Sound Bouncers'. You would get these Sound Bouncers and attach them to the area around you; almost like a barrier. Unlike a 'sound-proof wall', the Sound Bouncer doesn't absorb the sound, but rather…reflects it. Though sound-proof walls are considered a well-constructed creation, some sound will still escape that room due to the lack of 100% concealment. Also a sound-proof wall isn't quite portable or easily set or built." Gris passed around the Sound Bouncers to let the others observe. "As you can see, these Sound Bouncers have multiple slits on all sides. These slits are for the energy waves to come out and physically create the barrier. There are three energy waves that are emitted: The Taker, The Drainer, and The Reflector. The first wave/the Taker (inner-most wave), works almost like a glass window of a car. Just like how a glass window of a car takes in the ultraviolet waves from the sun, but doesn't let the infrared waves (which are transformed from the ultraviolet waves) out, the Taker will take in the sound waves emitted from within, but won't let the energy waves that the sound waves will turn into, out. This is where the Drainer comes in. I'm going to use the glass window of a car as an example again for your understanding. When the ultraviolet waves come through a glass window of a car, they get trapped inside the car (due to the type of wave it is) and sink into the cushions and other things which in turn, heats them up. The Drainer collects the energy wave that the sound waves are turned into along the way from the Taker to the Drainer, and uses it to power the Sound Bouncer. A Sound Bouncer containing no sound within can last for about…45 minutes, but a Sound Bouncer powered by the sound emitted within can last much longer. The Drainer can be almost compared to a solar panel." Gris took back the Sound Bouncers which were observed. He continued, "Then finally, the Reflector. The Reflector is the outer-most energy layer in the Sound Bouncer. The Reflector reflects, or bounces back, any remaining energy and or sound waves that pass through the Drainer. In the first model, there was only one layer in the Sound Bouncer, and that was the Reflector. But after testing that model, we found that the sound within echoed very loudly. So to keep it silent on the outside _and_ the inside, we developed the three layers. And…that's basically it." Gris looked around the group of people. "Any questions?"

Crystal made a face and said, "I think I understood that, but at the same time I didn't get it…"

Gris thought for a moment. "I'll give you a simplified summary of it then. So basically, the Sound Bouncer takes in the sound from the inside, transfers it to energy waves to power it, and reflects the remaining energy waves/sound waves to recycle energy within the three layers, keeping the Sound Bouncer running longer. It's pretty silent on the outside as well as the inside."

"Ok," said Crystal, "I think I understand it now. It would've been easier if you just explained it like that! The way you said all that…it was like trying to understand a different language."

Gris just sighed and gave a shrug.

"Well that was great and all Gris," Anrya said, "but do you have something to tell us? I mean, you came up here in a hurry…"

"Oh, yes," Gris said, "My sister Gray wanted me to tell you guys to come downstairs now…Zero-san has arrived." Everyone made a face. "You should also retrieve Darke-kun—"

Darke came walking down the stairs from the fourth floor and passed by them without a word.

"—I guess not…"

Giving a shrug, the rest of the guardians proceeded downstairs.

As Anrya and the guardians got downstairs, Rai observed that Zero was waiting on the couches with a cup of tea in his hand. Next to him was a guy with long, deep blue hair tied down low. _Hm, that's not Ace…I wonder who it is…_

"Hello everyone~" Zero called out with a smile, "Come take a seat~~~"

Out of the corner of his eye, Rai saw Esa make a face and shiver slightly. Rai walked over to a couch and sat down. Next to him sat Ryo. Around him, Anrya took a single couch, Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina took a long couch, Gray and Gris sat on another couch, and Darke remained standing, expression unable to be told due to his goggles. Zero and the long haired guy next to him sat in the center couch.

Zero put down his tea and looked around at everyone. "Well everyone, I'm here like I said I would be yesterday to go over the procedures and paperwork with you."

"Who's that guy?" Crystal said, interrupting Zero.

Zero turned to the person next to him and said, "Why don't you introduce yourself~?"

The person with the long, deep blue hair stood up and adjusted his glasses. To Rai, he looked very intelligent and…all-knowing…?

"Hello members of the Pericoloso Family," the guy said, "my name is Ren Kaiketsu, and I am with Zero-san as his accompanist."

"Nice to meet you," Anrya said.

"Huh," Crystal said, "Are you guys like in a family or something?"

Ren took a seat and turned to explain. "Something like that, yes."

"Hmhmhm~ Aren't you a curious one," Zero purred. "Ren and I belong to an organization called the Himitsu no Kanshu."

"Hm, what's that?" Rai asked in curiosity. Carefully looking at Zero and Ren, he noticed that they were wearing a matching black silver-lined overcoat, except that Zero had a golden "Z" on his right shoulder.

"The Himitsu no Kanshu, or the Keepers of Secrets, is an organization that keeps records of…things, analyze them, and many…other things…" Zero smiled as he gave a vague answer.

"So you're basically like a family," Crystal said.

"No," Zero replied, "this organization is slightly different from a family due to its…standards…"

"What standards?"

"That," Zero said, "is something I can't tell you Crystal-chan~"

Rai was about to ask Zero something once more but was cut off by Anrya. "Zero," Anrya said, " The paperwork?"

"Ah yes~"

"Why do we need paperwork for this Anrya-chan?" Rai curiously asked.

"Yeah, isn't this the mafia," Crystal snorted.

"This new family that you are starting was made due to our help," Ren stated," We are the ones holding on to your family rings, and we are the ones who have aided you. In exchange of giving you the rings and aid, you must, in return, aid or do us favors. That is what this paperwork is for."

"So it's basically a contract?" Rai questioned.

"Yes."

"Normally in the mafia you make you family without any paperwork, and become well known from your actions, but since we are the ones who aided you, a contract is needed." Zero took a sip of tea.

Rai looked over at Anrya who was looking over the paperwork. She then looked up and had a conversation with Zero about the paperwork (which Rai didn't pay attention to) and signed. Passing around the paper, Anrya told everyone to sign. When the paper got to Rai, he signed and passed it to the others. When the paperwork was done, Ren stood up with a box and went around to the people. Ren stood in front of Crystal and intently analyzed her.

"Dude, what are you doing," Crystal said, a bit uncomfortable.

"I am merely analyzing the type of flame you would best possibly be."

"Huh?"

Zero went to explain. "Ren has this strange power to _see_ flames and identify them."

"Everyone can see a flame," Crystal snorted.

"Yes, but yours isn't activated or found yet." Zero smiled. "What's more, Ren can sense a presence through their flame even at a distance. I say that he has sensory powers…a sensory type~"

"Woah," Rai said.

"Sun," Ren said suddenly. "The Sun flame is the type of flame that is contained within you."

"How does he know?" Rai wondered aloud.

"Everyone has a type of flame just for them," Ren answered. "An undiscovered flame can be found as well. Some people have a possibility for more than one flame, but I see which one is the most dominant within them."

"Isn't it possible for a person to have more than one flame for use though?" Esa asked joining the conversation.

"Correct," Ren said, "But that's extremely rare...at least from my experience." Ren then continued his _sensing_. Going around to each person Ren sensed their flame type and handed a certain ring to them. Crystal's flame was Sun, Esa's flame was Storm, Selina's flame was Mist, Rai's flame was Lightening, Jasmine's flame was Rain, Darke's flame was Cloud, and Anrya's flame was, of course, Sky. Stopping at Ryo, Ren looked up and asked Anrya, "What about this kid? He has the flame of mist, but he isn't considered your guardian."

"Hm," Anrya said, "I wasn't going to give him a ring because he was too young…"

"But even the youngest have potential Anrya-chan~" Zero said, eyes glittering.

"We can always give him a Grade A ring of mist," Ren suggested.

"Sure I guess…" Anrya said, "But only if Ryo wants it."

Everyone looked at Ryo, who was sitting next to Rai. "…." Ryo nodded.

"Then it's confirmed. I'll stop by tomorrow and hand you a ring Ryo-kun," Ren said.

Rai glanced at his ring to observe it. His ring was a silver color with green intricate linings around it. On one side was a hexagonal green gem imbedded into the ring, and there was the same identical gem on the other side too. To Rai's surprise, the ring momentarily glowed green and faded. _Was that my imagination?_ "Hey, my ring glowed."

"Yes, they tend to do that," Ren said. "By the way, these rings were given a name. They're called the Frammenti rings, which mean fragments."

"Why do they glow and why are they called 'Fragments'?" Rai questioned.

"According to the information I hold, these rings glow due to the way they were made, which leads me to their name," Ren said, "These rings were made in somewhat imitation of the Trisette. Unable to completely copy the exact format of the Trisette, these rings started to glow due to the raw energy they were made with. From the records, these rings used to be more powerful, but due to the failure in turning them into an exact imitation of the Trisette, their power was reduced and they became mere fragments to their former selves."

"Oh…" Rai said.

"I don't know the details fully, but that's as much as I know."

"Hmhmhm~" Zero chuckled to himself as he held up a piece of paper.

"What are you laughing about?...You laughing is never a good sign," Esa said.

"Esa-chan~ I'm just remembering the conversation about naming the family 'Pericoloso' and living up to that name…"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, I'm sure you need luck to live up to that name…~"

Esa made an impatient noise. "So what's your point?"

"Hmhmhm~ You're the 4444th 'family' to have listed onto our contract~"

"…and?"

"Esa-chan," Rai said, "Four is an extremely unlucky number…the fact that there are four fours makes it even worse…"

"…oh."

"We'll be fine," Anrya assured, "I don't believe in superstition like that."

"Just out of curiosity, how do you have that many families listed on your contract?" Jasmine questioned.

"Well, every family who wished to become a family contracted to our organization Jasmine-chan~ Seeing how we were the largest organization around to help that process, many amateur families contracted with us." Zero winked.

"Wow…big organization…" Jasmine commented.

"Hm~ Not quite. Some of our contractors are no longer contracted with us, some families broke apart, some died in missions, some families got completely obliterated…" Zero smiled.

"What!" Jasmine was shocked.

"It's true~"

"So…how many families are still living…or err…with you?" Jasmine asked.

"Well, in our contract hmm…three, and that's including the Pericoloso Family~"

"…."

Rai's eyes widened.

"One family is completely bonded to the organization and works directly under us, and the other…is still contracted to us, but doesn't associate with us anymore."

"Uh…" Rai was speechless.

"Good luck~" Zero said. Then standing up with Ren, Zero said, "Well I must be going now, I have a lunch meeting with certain people~" Zero and Ren left the room and disappeared out the door.

"…ok…" Anrya said. Then turning to the others she said, "Well that was pleasant…"

"Pffffft," Esa breathed out.

"On a happier note, let's have lunch and—oh I almost forgot!" Anrya scrambled and took out her phone. "It seems that two birthdays have passed while we were busy over the past few days…Esa's birthday on June 4th and Rai's birthday on June 5th…"

Esa made a face. "Rai has his birthday right after mine?"

Anrya nodded.

"Yay!" Rai sang, "Esa-chan and I have close birthdays~!"

"Why do _you_ have to have such a close birthday to me?" Esa complained.

"Awww, don't be like that Esa-chan~" Rai cooed.

"Well…I'm getting the cake," Anrya said leaving the group. "Gray, can you drive me?"

"Fine."

"Oya Esa-chan," Rai said, "don't you think we're a perfect match? After all we have such close birthdays~"

Esa glared. "No I don't."

"You could be a bit nicer to him Esa" Selina said, "It was his birthday after all."

"We're celebrating my birthday too," Esa said.

"Ah chillax guys~" Crystal said, joining in. "I want the cake!"

"Hmph~" Esa said. "My cake."

"We're all getting cake guys, just chill," Jasmine said. "By the way, how old are you turning Rai? I know Esa's turning thirteen."

"Fifteen," Rai answered. "Haha~ I'm older than you guys."

"Well technically in Japan we're considered a year older, so _I_ would be older than _you_," Selina said. "I'm fourteen, but in Japan I'm fifteen."

"So? I can still be older than you~" Rai said.

"My birthday's in January…"

"Oh…"

"Agh this time zone nonsense is confusing, let's just stick to our original ages please," Jasmine said.

**AND SO THE DAY CONTINUED…**

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><p><strong>And so we must review XD...<strong>


	11. Our Flames

_**Disclaimer:**_** Can I not?**

* * *

><p>It was early morning, before the sun rose, with a slight cool breeze passing through the area. There on the roof, sat a person, alone, with dark hair that had a slight tint of purple to it. His scarf fluttered in the breeze, and his expression was hidden under his goggles. There he sat, until the first rays of sunlight came out of the horizon. <em>Rustle <em>On the ground, near a tree, there was a rustling sound. The boy with the scarf jumped to his feet in a flash, and scanned the area by the tree. Out of the tree, flew a sparrow. "…." Lowering his hackles, the boy sat back down on the roof…

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><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

_Be-be-be-beep, be-be-be-beep…_ I woke up to the sound of my alarm beeping annoyingly on my shelf. "Ugh…gotta wake up…" It was 6:30 a.m., and I was tired. Giving myself a moment to completely wake up, I rolled out of bed, turned my alarm off, and headed for the bathroom somewhat like a zombie. I soon washed up, changed into some fresh clothing and headed out the door. _Huh, everyone must still be asleep…_ Glancing backwards towards the other bedroom doors, I pondered the thought of waking the others up, but then thought against it. I walked towards and down the stairs till I got to the ground floor. Turning to the left, I went towards a door marked: _Keep Out_, which was Gris and Gray's laboratory. Opening the door I walked in to say 'good morning'… _Boom…CRASH! _ "What the—" Unsure of what was happening, I ran into the large room. _Empty?_ Looking around, I saw the door to the downstairs lab was open. Running down the stairs, I turned the corner. "Gray! Gris! What's going on?"

On the other side of the room, said people were coughing. "Ah, don't worry Anrya-chan, we're fine." Gris came out of the smoke and smiled reassuringly. His safety goggles were crooked, his lab coat was slightly singed, and his hair was sticking out on ends.

"Yep," Gray added, "it's only a small explosion of an experiment that we were working on."

Yeah, um…ok, but…what exactly _were_ you working on?"

"Oh, we were just testing out a beam drone that we created…just for fun," Gris answered.

"A beam drone?" _For fun?_

"Yeah, it shoots out beams of energy from all sides and it has heat sensors to locate its target…We wanted to work with flame detection and flame usage, but since no one can really light their flame yet, we can't really work on that," said Gray. From the smoke, Gray pulled out a spherical object which was now severely damaged. "There seems to be some kind of defect in it."

"Uh, ok," I answered. _What would they possibly want to make that for?_ "Well, I'll be upstairs making some breakfast. Be there by 8 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. ok?"

Gray glanced at my direction. "You _do_ know it's still 6:49 a.m. right?"

"Uh, yeah…I guess I'll just…do something else for the meanwhile…" Quickly saying goodbye to Gris and Gray, I went out of their lower laboratory, to the ground floor lab, and then went out the door. _What should I do?_ I wondered. Glancing towards the entrance, I decided I would go outside for some fresh air. Checking to make sure I had the mansions keys with me, I walked out the front door and left.

**-Outside-**

_Hm, nice weather today~_ I thought as I wandered around the perimeter of the mansion. When I got to a clear area with a sturdy tree and not many bugs, I stood around and looked up at the clear sky. Then remembering yesterday, I took out my boss ring from my pocket and observed it. It was metallic and very well crafted. The ring had a sky blue tint to it and orange gems were embedded on opposite sides. Around it were gold and silver etchings that made the ring look majestic. _It's so pretty…_ I thought. Then putting the ring on the middle finger of my right hand, I found that the ring fit quite snuggly. "Hm… I wonder if I can light it up…" Filled with curiosity, I tried lighting up my flame. _Flicker_ A small, weak sky flame, but a flame nonetheless, lit up on my ring. My heart raced with excitement as I tried to experiment with it more…but was then disappointed when my flame died out. "Aww…" I kicked the ground in frustration and whirled around to head back to the mansion. _Pffft~_ "Huh?" I turned around in mid-step to see who it was that chuckled. The clearing behind me was empty except for the birds that chirped. "Hello, is anyone there?" There was no reply._ Huh, I guess not…maybe I was hearing things…_ Shrugging, I turned back towards the mansion again and went inside.

When I was back in the mansion, I walked into the living room and sat down for a while. Then, glancing at the clock, I saw it was currently 7a.m.. "Better prepare breakfast…" I muttered. Walking into the kitchen, I prepared the necessary items to cook with, as well as the necessary ingredients.

After 30 minutes of cooking, breakfast was ready. _That took a while._ Cleaning my hands, I stepped away from the set table and took off the apron. _It feels weird cooking for other people…_ "Hmph, it's already 8 a.m. …better call everyone to eat." I turned to go wake the others._ Ding dong _From the front, the doorbell rang."Huh?" Changing my course, I walked towards the front door and answered by opening it.

"Good morning Anrya-chan~" Zero's face was the first thing I saw as I opened the door.

"Oh yes Anrya-chan," said a voice behind Zero. It was Ren. "Sorry to have disturbed you this early in the morning, but I brought the ring for Ryo-kun."

"Ah, not at all Ren," I said, "but why is Zero here…?"

"Hm~?" Zero said.

"Ah, err…it's just I didn't expect to see you Zero."

"Well I hope you don't mind us being here Anrya-chan~" said Zero, "I do have some things I want to say to your family~"

"If that is fine with you Anrya-chan," Ren intervened.

"Yeah it's fine…Um, let me get the others down here." Quickly escaping, I went up the stairs to get everyone up for breakfast.

_**-Second Floor-**_

Knocking on each girl's door, I asked them to all wake up and come downstairs. When I was finished waking them up and making sure they were up, I went for the stairs to get to the guys' rooms.

_**-Third Floor-**_

"Yo guys, wake up and come downstairs ASAP." Then making sure they got the message, I banged each of their doors.

_**-First Floor-**_

When I got downstairs into the kitchen, I looked for something to do. I saw Zero and Ren already seated at the table for breakfast, and wondered if I should join them. Seeing nothing to do, I awkwardly stood around.

"Why don't you join us Anrya-chan?" Ren said.

"Yes, join us Anrya-chan~" Zero said. Then he chuckled. "Funny how the guest is inviting the owner to the table~"

"Errr…hehehe," I said as non-awkwardly as possible, "True that." _Oh…this is awkward… _Walking to the table, I took a seat on the opposite side of Zero and Ren. An awkward silence hovered in the air…or maybe it was just me because Zero seemed content on eating his fork-stabbed toast, and Ren was calmly sipping his tea. _Aw…people get over here already…_ Thankfully my wish came true…sort of. Walking into the kitchen was Darke. Maybe it was his aura or the way he held himself, but Zero and Ren seemed to have noticed him entering before I did.

"Good morning," I said.

"…." As usual, I got no reply.

Without turning around, Zero only slid his eyes toward Darke. He smiled. "Hmhmhm~ Well, it seems you came Darke-kun~"

I couldn't see the expression on Darke's face, but seeing how he coldly passed by Zero without a word, I guessed he didn't quite welcome Zero. Still sipping his tea, Ren calmly sat without a word. "Well Darke, take a seat," I said. Darke walked towards the opposite side of the table just as I did, and sat two chairs away from me.

"Hm~ Anrya-chan, won't you be eating~?" Zero munched on his toast, chair leaned back, his red and silver eyes glittering.

"Ah, well…I'm just waiting for the others to come down so that everyone will have enough to eat…"

"Don't worry," said Ren, eyes closed, sipping tea, "Your family will be arriving shortly…"

I obediently ate. Then, just as Ren said, the others came. First came in Rai and Selina. Rai brightly said his 'good mornings' and took a seat next to me on the left. Selina said her 'good mornings' too and took a seat between me and Darke. Next came Ryo, alone and quiet. He sat next to his brother as well as Ren. Then Esa, Jasmine, and Crystal came. They took a seat as well. Esa, not wanting to sit next to Rai or too close to Zero, sat in between Jasmine and Crystal. "Now we only need Gris and Gray…" I said in between chews.

"—What? Someone said my name?" In came Gray, and Gris right behind her.

"Hmhmhm~ Speak of the devil," Zero purred.

Gray stopped mid-stride and took a moment to critically stare at Zero. Then frowning, she turned to me with a looking asking _Why is he here?_ I just shrugged. Gris continued to walk towards the table and took a seat beside Zero. "Hmph," Gray said, and walked to the table and took a seat.

"Hmhmhm~ You shouldn't frown Gray-chan~ It gives you wrinkles when you get older~" Zero took a bite out of his toast after finishing his comment.

"Shut up you freeloader…" Gray retorted, and then we all went to eating breakfast.

"So Zero, you said you wanted to tell us something?" I looked at Zero expectantly and waited for a reply.

Zero took his time finishing his toast. Then he replied. "Well, Ren and I feel that we should teach your family now, the basics of the flame and how to light one~"

This surprised me because I didn't think that Zero was the teaching type. "Heh? You guys?"

"Do you have any other connections or teachers to teach you~?" Zero asked.

"No…but do you guys usually do this?" I asked.

"No~" Zero's eyes glittered deviously.

"Then why?..."

Ren intervened. "Seeing how your newly formed family has absolutely no connections or knowledge, it seems you need some guidance. Previous families, who registered to us, had some sort of connection with the mafia or knowledge of some sorts. Of course in this era there really aren't many new families being created because there are older, more powerful families around. Most people will just try to get into these families or in other cases; they will serve in the family's branches. Some new families that are made however are usually either street gangs with the mafia-like experience, broken up families, etc. But of course no matter who you are, if your family is not strong enough (and that is in all ways) you will not survive. Seeing how we don't have many families that are contracted to us left…we decided a clueless family like you should be at least prepared."

"Oh…that's nice," I commented.

Zero smiled and seemed to share a private thought with Ren in an exchanged glance. "If you are done eating by now, shall we get started~?"

Everyone nodded and started to put there dishes away.

"Don't forget your rings~"

We all gathered outside. Everyone seemed pretty excited at the thought of learning how to light a flame on their rings. I had to admit, I was pretty excited too. Then Ren spoke up.

"Ah Ryo-kun, this is your ring…though you may not be a guardian, you should probably learn how to light a flame." Ren handed Ryo the ring and headed back next to Zero. "Now let me explain the flame. The flame that one lights is called a 'Dying Will Flame'. The Dying Will Flame is a high-density form of energy that is refined from one's own life-force. Due the way how it resonates with one's emotions, it has been regarded as a type of battle aura. However, unlike the aura, which is a supernatural phenomenon that can only be seen by a few individuals, the Dying Will Flame is, in many ways, more alike to a real flame, possessing even its own destructive properties. As you know, there are seven types of flames of the sky: Sky, Storm, Sun, Lightening, Rain, Mist, and Cloud. There are other types of flames as well, but we'll get into that another time… A flame's power is measured by its purity, and the purity level is controlled by one's resolve. The stronger your resolve is, the purer your flame will be, thus stronger. But before we even go into purity, we need to learn how to light our flames." Ren pulled out his right hand which had a ring on the middle finger and lit a rain flame. "Now to light a flame, you need to have a resolve…Keep in mind of your resolve and try to light your flames."

I lifted up my right hand and tried to light my flame. Nothing. Frowning I tried to light it again, but it didn't work. "Huh." I glanced around at the others. Darke and Ryo had already lit their flames and Ren nodded approvingly. Next to me, Esa glared at her ring, willing it to light up. As for Jasmine and Crystal, they seemed to be having trouble too. _Ok…I guess I'm not the only one having trouble…_ I looked towards Selina. She seemed to be speaking with Zero. I couldn't hear their conversation, but I could tell that Zero was brief in his talk. Selina nodded and looked at her ring. After a moment of concentration, a flame lit up on her ring. _How did she do that?_ Wondering how Selina lit her flame, I then turned to look at Rai. … _What the heck…_ Rai had a…strange expression on his face. Rai's face was all screwed up in concentration. His cheeks were blown up as he held his breath, and his face was turning red. Staring intently at his ring, Rai stood in a rigid position. "Um…Rai?" Rai didn't answer me and continued to stare at his ring. "Rai! I don't think you're doing it right…" _I know I didn't even light my own flame but…I'm pretty sure he's doing it wrong_… Crystal, Esa, and Jasmine laughed slightly beside me.

"Ah…uh…what?" Rai said.

"Well Rai, you look like you're…" I said, "In pain."

"Constipated," Esa said.

"About to explode," Jasmine added in.

"All of the above," Crystal said, laughing.

Rai gave an embarrassed, lopsided grin and shrugged. "I'm trying to light my ring, but it's not working…"

"Well, you need a resolve," said Ren, walking towards us, "What is your resolve?"

"Uh…" Rai trailed off.

Understanding how Rai felt, I spoke. "Well, like Rai, I can't light my flame either. I understand the resolve part…kinda…but I don't quite understand what my resolve would be. I mean, I know what resolve is, but at the same time…I don't. I'm not sure if I have one or what it exactly is." I shuffled my feet slightly.

"Same here," Crystal said. Esa and Jasmine nodded.

"Knowing what resolve is and actually having one seems like a whole different thing to me…" Esa commented.

Ren sighed and adjusted his glasses. Zero came walking up towards us. "Hmhmhm~ Perhaps you should explain some more and give some advice Ren-kun~"

Ren looked directly towards us. "Resolve. I would consider this to be your will, strong emotion, goal, or ambition…"

"Yeah but what exactly does that mean?" I cut in. Seeing how rude that was, I apologized. "Sorry about that but…what kind of goal or will, am I supposed to hold? To protect the people I love? No offense but that only happens in story books, mangas, and animes. Plus that kinda sounds corny…"

Ren sighed. "Your resolve doesn't necessarily have to be noble," Ren said, "It can be simple, and if your resolve happens to be a noble one, then it's fine. Your resolve is unique to you, so it'll be different for each person." Then Ren muttered quietly so that no one heard, "But in some cases there are some ridiculous resolves…"

"Oh…ok…" I replied.

"Yay!" Beside me Rai whooped in joy. His ring was lit with a steady lightening flame.

"What!" Esa said.

"How did you…" I trailed off.

"Rai-kun, what was your resolve…if you don't mind sharing," Ren questioned.

"Ah, that's simple! I just want to have the best time with this family, always have fun, keep everyone smiling, and even get Esa-chan to hang out with me~!" Rai beamed.

Esa made a face.

"Oh ok…" I replied.

"But Rai-kun~" Zero cut in, "Not every event in a mafia life will be pleasant. At times, things will not be fun and sometimes even painful~"

"But we can still have fun and I can help people smile~" Rai's flame did not waver.

Zero and Ren exchanged glances. Ren sighed and shook his head saying, "Rai's resolve seems to be firm and legitimate…"

"…." _Rai's resolve sounds…like something you'd read in a book._ Sighing, I continued to try to get my flame to light up.

"Agh, this is taking forever~" Crystal whined, "What if it never lights up?"

"Just be patient and keep trying," I replied. I felt my patience waning, but continued to concentrate.

"Ugh, this isn't working," Jasmine groaned.

By now all those who had already lit their flames were indoors.

"Yeah, I know right?" I said, "And it's almost already lunch time too."

"Wait a second," Crystal intervened, "It's almost lunch time, and today is Saturday…OH MY GOD THE NEW ANIME EPISODE IS COMING OUT NOW! I need to go!" Crystal's flame lit up with a sun flame. Without noticing it herself, Crystal ran into the mansion.

"You have got to be kidding me," Jasmine said.

Ren shook his head once more.

More time passed as we tried to light our flames, ask questions, ask for advice, etc. Soon Jasmine and Esa were able to light their flames.

"Agh, what is this?" I mumbled, "Everyone lit their rings' flames except me."

"Don't worry Anrya-chan," Ren said, "You'll eventually light your ring with a sky flame."

I doubted that in my mind, but continued to try to light my flame. Nothing. Sighing I wondered what could possibly be my will. But thinking of a will seemed…hopeless. _What could I possibly have a will for? Oh…but wait…a goal or ambition seemed simpler…_ Something clicked in my mind. _Something I said before…_ I smiled. I knew what my resolve would be…Actually, I had this resolve for a while, but just didn't think of it as one. Looking back at my ring, I thought of my resolve and held fast to it. My ring lit up. I smiled even wider in delight.

"Well done Anrya-chan," Ren looked at me.

"Thanks!" I replied.

"So~ What was little Anrya-chan's resolve~?" There came Zero's voice as well as Zero himself.

"Er…um…" I thought for a moment and wondered if I should share it or not. _Why not…_ "Remember how a day or so ago we spoke of making a family name?"

"Yes~"

"And how before that we…er…lost to you on that trial you gave to test us?"

"Hmhmhm~ Yes Anrya-chan~"

"Well honestly…I don't like losing…plus I want our family to live up to its name because: A. I don't want to look stupid and B. Cause living up to that name would be awesome."

"Hmhmhm~"

"I guess it's kind of like studying for me…Sometimes I doubt that I'll ever be number one in the school…but I still want to…"

"So~ Your resolve is a goal or an ambition~"

I nodded.

"Interesting~~~" Zero turned away from me so that the only thing I saw was his snow white hair. "Ren-kun and I will be in shortly for lunch, why don't you go ahead in~?"

"Ah…but I didn't cook anything and I don't think the others—"

"Not to worry Anrya-chan," Ren said, joining the conversation, "We ordered food to come to this manor."

Surprised I stumbled over my words. "Oh…um…thanks Ren...uh I'll be heading in and…yeah…come quickly." I ran towards the mansion.

* * *

><p>"Hmhmhm~" Zero chuckled as he saw Anrya run towards the mansion. He turned to Ren. "Ren-kun, what are the results~?"<p>

"Well Zero, from how I observed each of their flames, they seem to have gotten the basics of lighting flames." Ren adjusted his glasses. "They learned to light their flames quite quickly though. Usually an adult won't get the hang of lighting a flame that easily…"

"Hmhmhm~ Well if you think about that Ren-kun, most of them are somehow connected to the mafia (though not all), and they're all still children. Unlike most adults, children have dreams, ambitions, goals, desires…Adults may have these too, but a child's desire is stronger and rawer." Zero's eye glittered. From afar, if the sun's rays hit Zero's eyes in a certain way, his eyes looked like a red glitter in the forestry. "How about their flames' purity Ren-kun~?"

"Their flames don't seem to be quite pure…their strength levels are low, though Darke's flame seems to have the most purity out of all of them." Ren trailed off. "I still have concerns about the flames that each person lit. It indeed lit, but those resolves aren't quite firm, but rather based on emotion. I think it would've been safer if they had a firmer resolve…" Ren sighed.

"Interesting~" Zero had a smile played on his lips. "Well, we should be going in now Ren-kun~ The others are waiting~"

Ren nodded. Then he and Zero walked into the mansion.

* * *

><p><strong>Jasmine's P.O.V.<strong>

_Agh…so bored…_ I had been sitting on the living room sofa for ten minutes now. After somehow lighting my flame, I came into the mansion. Selina had gone up to the library with Ryo (from what I had heard from Gris), Crystal had undoubtedly gone either to her room or the library to watch her anime, Rai was pestering Gray, and Darke…well he's always disappearing so I didn't really mind him. Sighing, I took out my iPod and listened to some K-Pop. "Ah…"

"You sound like a zombie Jasmine." The voice belonged to Anrya who had just come in.

Turning my head, which was leaning on the sofa, I just stared at Anrya and said, "I'm bored." I probably had a dead expression on my face. "Hey, so did you light your flame or…"

"I got my ring to light a sky flame."

"Congrats."

"Thanks."

There was a silence between us for a while, but it was broken with the entrance of Zero and Ren.

"Hmhmhm~ Hello ladies. Oya Jasmine-chan, why the long face~?"

I didn't reply.

"Hmhmhm~"

"Anrya-chan, Jasmine-chan," said Ren, "Can you proceed to the dining area? We prepared lunch this time."

"Sure," I answered. Anrya just nodded. We then proceeded to the dining area.

"Hey Jasmine," Anrya whispered to me.

"What."

"Don't you think Zero and Ren are sort of an odd pair?"

"I guess…" I shrugged.

"Zero is very…unique in personality while Ren is very polite and critical in thought…"

I shrugged again.

"Well what do you—HOLY MOTHER…WHAT IS THIS!" Anrya gaped at the dining table and soon I followed. On the table were piles, literally, piles of food, neatly placed on fine silverware. The types of food on the table were various. Foods from different countries and cultures were placed on beautiful dishes. All the drinks there were exotic and different too. I'm pretty sure that Anrya and I stood in front of the doorway gaping like idiots, and that if it wasn't for the rest of the family, along with Zero and Ren to come in, we would've stayed like that for a long time.

"Woah!" Crystal exclaimed.

"This looks delicious!" Rai excitedly said.

"Wow," Esa said, surprised.

"Nice," Selina said with a smile.

"…." Darke and Ryo remained silent as usual, expressions unable to be read.

"Let's go in and have lunch everyone~" Zero stood behind us with Ren at his side.

"Er…ok…but where's Gris and Gray?" Anrya said.

"They will be here shortly," Ren replied.

We all went inside and took a seat at the dining table.

"Ah…thanks for the meal Zero, Ren," Anrya said, taking a seat, "It's very extravagant…you really didn't have to really…"

"Yes he did." In came Gray and Gris right behind him.

"Hmhmhm~ Welcome to lunch Gray-chan, Gris-kun~"

"Gray!" Anrya gave Gray a look.

"Freeloaders need to cough up their payment at one point," said Gray indifferently. The two took a seat.

"Well now that everyone is here, let us eat~" Zero smiled. We all dug in.

In the middle of our feast, Zero made an announcement. "Hmhmhm~ Hope you're all enjoying the lunch. Just to tell you, Ren and I will be staying at your mansion for some time."

Esa choked on her drink.

"Are you ok?" I asked.

Esa nodded and continued to drink.

"Because we thought it was necessary," Zero continued without missing a beat, "Ren, I, and the others will tutor you for the time being. We will teach you the things you need to know. After that, you're on your own~~~"

There was a silence in the room.

"Hmhmhm~" Zero smiled and stabbed a piece of steak. Holding the fork-stabbed meat in his hands, Zero's eyes glittered, and then he devoured it.

* * *

><p><strong>Cited a bit from: <strong>wiki/Dying_Will_Flames


	12. Ace Training

_**Disclaimer:**_** "_"**

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

_Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle…_Somewhere from my sub-consciousness I heard the sound of feet shuffling outside my bedroom door. Still asleep and not quite conscious yet, my senses were dull and everything was dark. The sound lingered in my mind, but I ignored it and returned to my peaceful slumber. I was sinking into the dark, velvety covers of my sub-consciousness when _Tap, tap, tap…_ there came the soft tapping on my bedroom door. I was pulled out of my sub-consciousness as I vaguely wondered who it was tapping on my bedroom door. Slowly cracking open my eyes, I listened for the sound of a person, but heard nothing. Turning to my other side, I got comfortable again, shut my eyes, and began to drift off to sleep once more. _Knock, knock, knock_ A more persistent knock came at my door. Sleepily, but still clearly, I called out "What!" That probably wasn't the most polite thing to say, but I was too tired and not quite awake enough to ask "Who is it?" I sat up in my bed as the person on the other side said, "I'm coming in Anrya-chan."_A male voice? _The door opened and Ace stepped into my room. "Huh?" Out of habit I checked my clock first to see what time it was: 4:50 a.m., then I put on my glasses. Going slightly into my cranky mode, I asked, "What brings you here this early Ace?"

"Hahaha~" Ace started off good-spiritedly, "Hey don't I get a good morning first~?"

"No," I bluntly answered. Then, "Sorry Ace, but it's kind of early right now and I'm sort of cranky."

"No problem Anrya-chan~" Ace smiled.

"So, what do you want…and how did you get into the mansion?"

"Ah, well Zero-san and Ren-san wanted me to help you guys start off training, so I came to wake you guys up. As for how I got in…well your mansion doesn't really have any guards or security so…"

My eyes widened. "You broke in?"

"Uh…I guess you can put it that way…But I really didn't want to disturb you guys so early in the morning, so I quietly came in…"

"I guess I'll wake up now…" Rubbing the last of the sleepiness away from my eyes, I got out of bed and headed for my bathroom. "Hey Ace…wait outside will ya?"

"Sure." Ace winked and left my room.

"Ugh…so tired…" I yawned. I went into the bathroom to clean myself up. "A shower will probably wake me up…"

* * *

><p><strong>Ryo's P.O.V.<strong>

_**-Ten Minutes Earlier-**_

_A person…?_ I woke up to the sound of an opening window somewhere outside. _Did Big Brother Darke wake up and go out again…?_ Slowly getting out of bed, I went next door to my brother's room.

"…." There my brother sat, alert and awake, silently on his bed. My brother's goggles were already on as well as his scarf.

"Hn, someone's here…" Big brother stood and walked towards the window. Looking outside, he stood silently.

I walked over to my brother's side and looked out the window as well. A person climbed the tree that big brother used most frequently, and entered the fourth floor. The person had green hair. It was Ace.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

"Ah~ That felt nice." After a good shower and some clean clothing, I felt refreshed and fully awake. I went out of my room to meet Ace, but found that only Selina was there.

"Good morning Selina. Did Ace wake you too?"

"Yeah." Selina looked slightly tired as well, but she seemed awake and cleaned up.

_Creak… _The door to Crystal's room opened. "Ugh, you guys are so loud. Can't you be quiet?" Crystal drowsily scowled at me and Selina.

"Hey Crystal," I said, "Didn't Ace go to wake you up?"

"Ugh…yeah he did…but I fell asleep again."

"Well, you might as well wake up now…we have to anyways…" I shifted on my feet.

"Aw—" Crystal opened her mouth to whine again, but was cut off by Ace's arrival.

"Hey ladies, up and ready?" Ace gave a bright smile. Ace looked between us and asked, "The others didn't wake?"

"No," I answered. "Did you go into their rooms and tell them to wake up?"

"Hm…I knocked on their doors, went inside, and shook them a bit…but I guess they didn't quite wake yet…" Ace shrugged.

"Did you try slapping them?"

"Nope. Ren-san insisted that I be polite to you ladies when trying to wake you up…but we're late on schedule right now so…" Ace grinned and walked over to Jasmine's room first. Opening her door, Ace entered Jasmine's room and rummaged through his coat pocket. "Ah, here it is." Ace pulled out an air horn.

"Uh…" I wondered if that was a good idea, but decided to let it go. _This should be interesting…but I kinda feel bad for Jasmine…_

**BLAAAAAAAAAAARE**

" Ugh, what the heck was that for?" Jasmine irritatedly groaned.

"Good moooorning Jasmine-chan!" Ace happily said.

Jasmine just gave Ace an irritated look.

"Jasmine, sorry about that, but you're going to have to wake up for a bit of training…" I smiled apologetically.

"Why do I have to?" Jasmine said as she yawned.

"Well Jasmine-chan, would rather have me press this air horn again?" Ace smiled at Jasmine, finger on the trigger.

"Uuuugh…fine." Jasmine got out of bed. "Give me a minute to dress."

"Four of the girls down, one to go," said Ace. Ace left the room and Selina, Crystal, and I followed. Esa's room was the one next to Jasmine's; last one down the hall. As Ace walked down towards Esa's room, he said, "We're very behind schedule…it's already 5:10 a.m."

"Is this training _that_ urgent?" I asked.

"Yup." Ace had gotten to Esa's door and he opened it wide open. Ace grinned. "3 2 1…"

**BLAAAAAAAAAAAARE**

* * *

><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

**BLAAAAAAAAAAAARE**

I woke to the obnoxious sound of an air horn blaring. _Erg…somehow this sound feels familiar…_Ripping open my eyes, I sat up and grabbed my glasses. I saw the faces of Anrya, Selina, Crystal…and Ace. Ace was grinning widely, air horn in hand. "WHAT THE HECK!" I shouted with a scowl.

"Wakey-wakey Esa-chan," Ace said. "We have to start training and we're already behind schedule."

"Sheesh, couldn't you have woken me up in a less noisy way?" I got out of bed then, grabbed some clothing, and started towards my bathroom.

"Well I did try…but you didn't quite wake up…" Ace smiled.

"Hmph." I then closed the door to my bathroom and started to clean and dress up.

"Now, let me go quickly wake the guys…well just Rai. Darke and Ryo should already be awake…"

"How do _you_ know?" Crystal asked.

"Well…Darke seems sharp and Ryo seems sensitive, so I expect that they heard me come in and woke up."

"Eh? Darke sharp and Ryo sensitive? No way…well maybe Darke _is_ sharp, but Ryo being _sensitive_?"Crystal looked at Ace disbelievingly. Behind the door of the bathroom, I silently agreed with Crystal.

Ace shrugged. "Maybe that's just me~" Ace and the others continued to talk amongst themselves. It was around then I came out of the bathroom nice and clean. "Well, time to go ladies." Ace went out into to the hall, walked down the hall, and started up the stairs. We followed.

"Yo wait up!" Jasmine came running down the hall towards us.

"Looks like you're finally here," Ace remarked. Then we went up.

Getting to the third floor, we first saw Darke and Ryo standing outside their doors.

"…Hey…uh good morning guys," I awkwardly started off. Everyone except for Ace awkwardly raised/waved their hands at Darke and Ryo. Ace, on the other hand, gave a knowing look at Darke and Ryo with a slight smile. Ace walked towards Rai's door and took out the air horn from his jacket pocket.

"Hey Ace," I said, "Did you get that from Gray?"

"What, the air horn? Yeah. How did you know?"

"Well…it looked and sounded familiar…" I recalled the time when Gray woke us up with the air horn…

_Gray rolled her eyes. "Just be thankful that I watched over you while you were knocked out."_

_Beside her, Jasmine stirred and woke up. "You guys are already arguing?"_

_"Ugh," Crystal muttered as she too, woke up. "You guys are so loud; I'm trying to sleep here…"_

_"Oh look, little miss sunshine woke up," Gray said sarcastically. "Good morning princess~"_

_Crystal glared at Gray through narrowed, sleepy eyes._

_Gray just ignored Crystal and clapped her hands. "Since everyone is starting to wake up…I'll wake the others…"_

_"Five more minutes…" Crystal mumbled going back to sleep._

_"Too late," Gray said. She pulled out an air horn…_

_"Oh shit," Esa said, covering her ears._

…_and pulled the trigger. __**BLAAAAAAAAARE!**_

The others seemed to remember that as well. I made a face at the memory and then dismissed it. Ace just chuckled and opened Rai's bedroom door. Inside Rai's bedroom was Rai, sleeping. He was sprawled on his bed, sheets all tangled up, a leg and an arm hanging out of the bed. Ace gave a smile and pulled the trigger…

**BLAAAAAAAAAARE**

"AAAH!" Rai gave a yelp and fell on the floor. "Ow…"

After waking Rai up, we all went downstairs, had breakfast, and went outside to clear grounds.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

"Ok everyone," Ace started, "We are officially behind on time because it's 5:45 a.m. and the sun already rose.

"So? What's so important about that?" Crystal said, "We can always train or whatever with the sun in the sky."

"Well, I thought the sunrise would've been a nice view for training…but if you don't think much about views, just think of it this way: The faster we train, the more we'll train, the better your skills will be, and the faster you can rest~" Ace smiled. "You'll probably need that rest because you have a night training session with me too."

_No way…_ I thought. Then, "Um Ace, how often is our training?"

"It's every other day for a week or two, and then we're doing it every day…after that it's for me, Zero and Ren-san to decide how to train you based on your skills."

"Hn," I heard Darke mutter behind me.

"Now," Ace said, "From now forth you are to call me either Ace-san or Ace-sensei…Actually, in Japanese society, if you don't really know a person you're supposed to put an ending of –san after their name, but since not all of you are from Japan, I'll let it slide. Here in training though, you are to call me with either of those suffixes…but I'm not here to lecture (you can leave that to Ren-san) so I'll explain the training. Basically, you can think of me as your physical education teacher!"

_Whaaaaaaat?_ Everyone glanced at Ace, then away.

_Shouldn't be too bad_ I thought. _Physical education in school is boring anyways…_ "So Ace…um I mean Ace-san, what are we exactly doing? What are the details to this training?"

"I like to keep things simple, so I may not always go into detail…but this time I will. Before you even go into mafia warfare, weaponry, flame use or even battle, you need to be fit. Some of you are probably thinking 'so what's so important about _that_ if I can shoot things, fight, etc.'…Well, what about your stamina? What about your strength in battle no matter what type of fighter you are? What about speed? Self-defense? And if nothing else, if you can't fight, how will you run away, or how will you stall the enemy? Do have the stamina, strength, or speed to run away? That's why we're starting from the basics.

"I see your point and it makes sense Ace-san," I said, "But I feel that things got a bit more complicated. Thinking about this and what we're lacking really shows the reality of our skills and knowledge."

Ace smiled. "That's why I like to keep things simple. Thinking too much can be stressful (not saying thinking isn't important, but too much of it isn't healthy) so that's why I'd just do it and progress." Everyone seemed to agree with this. "But I'm telling you now, if you don't work hard, you won't progress. Your skills aren't going to suddenly be perfect in a day…it takes time. How long? I don't know~"

And that's how we started training. First we started off with stretches to loosen our muscles. Next we did some beginner's yoga to soothe our muscles and increase our flexibility. Ace-san mentioned that yoga gets harder. After yoga, we did some easy and not so very easy exercises. Though not all of us were perfect at it, we still managed. Whenever we didn't do something right, Ace-san chided us or made us do it over again until we got it right. Since not all of us were fit (that included me) we were tired and huffing by the time we got to our running unit.

"Now, now, tired already? We just got started!" Ace firmly stood in front of us.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but…" I quickly checked my phone. "It's 7 a.m. now right?"

"Yes."

"So we've been training for an hour and fifteen minutes, right?"

"Yes."

"_That's_ just getting started?"

"Yes."

"You have got to be kidding me," Crystal muttered.

"Well we'd better begin," Ace said. "We've got lots to do. Now, I've mark a path around and about this mountain, so that you can have a feel of different terrains. Some places will be flat, others not…Now this path, I will admit, is pretty long for beginners like you, but it should be bearable."

"How long?" Esa questioned.

"Ah, around 5 1/3 miles…"

"What!" Jasmine exclaimed.

"Don't worry; we're starting off easy today. Later on I'll be timing you guys and trying your speed, stamina, etc. For now, all you have to do is follow the path and run/walk/jog when directed. If this goes as planned, it should take you about…2 hours?" Ace checked his watch.

"We only have 2 hours for 5 1/3 miles!" Crystal exclaimed. "Isn't that too short?"

"It should be plenty of time since you won't be walking constantly," Ace remarked.

"I don't know a lot about pacing and time, but I have done track," I said, "For me (and by the way I'm _not_ a great runner) it took about…(not very sure)10-15 minutes to do one mile?…That is of course, if you're constantly jogging the whole mile. It's pretty hard…"

"Now," Ace said, "Just so that no one cheats or gets clever, I marked a path with some special rods that I brought with me flowing with my lightening flame." Ace gave a slight sadistic smile. "If you don't know already, the lightening flame has one of the highest hardness and is great in defense. I kind of made the path into a barrier, but instead of keeping things out, it keeps you in. If you try to cut through the path to go on a shorter or easier path, you won't be able to because you won't be able to break through."

"Well it's not like we can escape since you're coming with us," Jasmine remarked.

"Hm, were you planning to escape? Well it doesn't matter…and I won't be coming along with you," Ace said.

"Huh?"

"Then how can we know when to run or not?" I asked. Then, "Wait…you're not going to make us run the whole way, are you?"

Ace laughed. "Even if I told you to run the whole way, there wouldn't really be a way to force you to. But don't worry, we're not running the whole way…yet." Most of us groaned at this remark. "But I will be erasing the path as you go. That means you'll know when to run when a lightening flame wall starts advancing on you at a quicker pace." I wondered if that lightning flame wall hurt people…but decided I wouldn't take chances. "Ok, no more talking," Ace said, "Go run to the start of the path there…GO!"

We ran. When we got to the path and entered it, the area behind us was blocked off by a green wall of lightening flame. Along the side and sometimes above, we saw the rods that Ace had mentioned. Flowing and connecting the rods were lightening flames. Out of curiosity, I threw a pebble at the ceiling of the dome like path. When it hit, the pebble bounced back down. Examining the pebble, I saw that it was in good condition. _So, the side barrier isn't really electricity…_Around me, I saw Selina, followed by the others, throwing small pebbles at the barrier surrounding us. For a path, it was wide. All eight of us could've walked side by side and we still would've had some space left. Picking up another pebble, I aimed it at the slowly progressing wall of lightening flames, and threw. As it impacted the wall, there was a slight _zap_ sound, and then it bounced back. Examining this pebble, I saw that there was a slight seared mark on one side. "Good," I said, thinking somewhat aloud, "That wall isn't here to fry us, but just to zap us a bit if we don't get going at a certain pace…" The others heard me comment and exchanged glances.

"C'mon guys, let's go," Selina said with a yawn.

"Sure," I replied.

Up ahead, Darke walked independently, hands in his pocket, light reflecting off his goggles as his scarf swayed side to side. Beside him, Ryo walked silently alongside him. The terrain we were walking on now was flat, grassy land. At first things were quiet, but soon that changed. For each terrain we experienced, we ran, jogged, and walked for a random amount of time, in a random order. We went through flat, grassy land, uphill, downhill, forest, cement sidewalk, wet grounds, sandy grounds, rocky terrains, etc. Some terrains were natural, while others seemed to be man-made. We went huffing and puffing, cussing, panting, and sometimes yelping inside the path. Darke and Rai seemed to have the best stamina out of all of us. Maybe it was because they were guys…or maybe it was because _we_ weren't fit. Either way, by the time we got to the end of the path, we all collapsed on the ground, some more gracefully than others.

"You guys are right on time~" Ace said with a cheery smile. Unfortunately, he wasn't quite met with a cheery expression.

"No duh," Jasmine remarked, "If we didn't get here on time, we would've been fried. That wall was mad scary."

"Glad you liked it," Ace answered. "Now~ we all get a break time!" Handing out some snacks and drinks, Ace waited for us to get calmed and refreshed. "Currently, it's around 9 a.m. right now. We'll be training till noon and then you'll be free till our night session after dinner." We all groaned. "Now, now, since we did some pretty hard stuff for you guys, we'll do something fun next. Starting off with tree climbing, we'll then do some sports and games perhaps, and end with a water activity. Sounds good?" Everyone, too tired to answer, just nodded. Ace started off with a low V-shaped tree that we could all climb. I was uneasy at first because ticks usually lived in the V-shaped part of a tree, but soon forgot my worries in the fun of the activity. We were all able to scale the short trees, though some better than others, but when Ace began to choose harder ones, less and less of us were able to climb the trees. Ace then began to tell us different ways to scale tall trees.

"Not so easy to climb the tree now huh. In the case you can't seem to easily scale a tree, you have several options. 1. You can use an object or have a partner be your step-stool to get to a branch. 2. You can jump up and grab a branch and pull yourself up. A running start is fine too. Of course you'll need some arm strength for that. 3. If another tree is very close to the tree you want to scale then you can use that other tree to climb up the tree you want. 4. Fly up there 5. If you have any sort of rope, use it somehow to climb up the tree 6. If you have any sort of weapon or stuff you can use as pegs…use it. And I think that's all for now." Ace crossed his arms and leaned on a tree.

"Wow…" Crystal commented.

Next we went to sports. For the most part…I failed at most of the sports. I was pretty decent in tennis, archery, and badminton, but besides those, I sucked. Rai practically put us all to shame with his sport skills, though Darke, Ryo, and Selina weren't too shabby. After our sports unit, we went to our water unit. We were all told to dress casually with swimsuits under our clothing, and meet in the back of the mansion. When we were all dressed and ready, we went to the back.

"Woah, cool! It's a pool!" Rai exclaimed.

"It's pretty big too," Esa remarked.

"_Really_ big," Jasmine added.

"…Uh Ace…I mean Ace-san, I love the pool and all, but we didn't have a pool before…did we? I'm pretty sure there wasn't a pool in the back of the mansion. Ever."

"About that Anrya-chan," Ace said, "I kind of forgot to mention that we constructed your estate a bit yesterday and today…Is it ok with you to have the pool here?"

"Agh that's fine, but next time can you tell me _before_ you construct?"

"Sure."

"This is a pretty cool pool Ace!" Crystal commented.

"Don't forget to add the suffix," Ace chided.

"Yeah, fine, Ace-sensei," Crystal said.

"I just want to say," I started, "You're not that bad of a trainer…teacher…whatever."

"Yeah," Crystal agreed, "You do some fun stuff. Well…some training stuff weren't so fun…"

Jasmine gave Ace a little thumbs up, and Selina smiled.

"At least you're not completely weird or…strange like Zero and Ren," Esa said.

"I can't fully agree with you on that since you don't know our background much, but I'll take it as a compliment" Ace said. "But don't be fooled with this smile and charming looks, I can still become a completely different person~"

"Heh."

"Ace-san, I really like you as our sensei!" Rai said with a grin.

"Glad to hear that," Ace replied, "But training's going to get harder~" Ace gave us a wink.

We then started our water unit. We started off with some balancing games with floating pads, ropes, and hoops. We all did well at first, but as the task got harder, some of us fell into the pool. I fell in once, as did Esa and Rai. The water was shockingly cold, but soon I got used to it. When Esa fell in, she came out cursing very colorfully. Rai on the other hand, came out laughing. After some water activities, we swam for a bit and then it was lunch time. We had our lunch, and collapsed on the couches to rest. When dinner passed we had our nightly session.

And so our training continued. By the end of the week though…

"So tired…" Crystal muttered.

"I know right," Jasmine agreed.

We were all collapsed on the sofas of the living room.

"Yo, if you guys are going to zombie out, at least go upstairs and do it," Gray said. Her arms were crossed and she stood pointedly in front of us.

"Too tired to," Esa muttered.

Gray frowned. "Fine whatever, but just don't stare at me like zombies while I'm on my break." Gray pinched the bridge of her nose. "I pulled off two all-nighters…"

"Hmph, no one told you to…" Crystal muttered.

Gray ignored Crystal and turned on the TV.

"Hey guys," Selina said walking into the living room, "We have to go now for our night session." We all groaned. "Darke, Ryo and Anrya are already out there…we should go too."

And so we continued this training cycle for about three months…

* * *

><p><strong>:D<strong>


	13. Request

**A.N.-**** Sorry for the late upload~ High school life XD**

_**Disclaimer:**_** As usual.**

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

I woke up. _Hm? No air horn yet?_ It's been about three months since the day Ace woke us up for our first day of training. Since then, I've gotten used to the wake-up call of the obnoxious air horn. Grabbing my glasses, I checked the time: 4:45 a.m. _That's odd. Usually Ace comes around this time to wake me up…_ I drowsily pondered if I should wake up or go to sleep, but curiosity got the better of me, and I decided to check things downstairs. Throwing on some clothes, I left my room and headed downstairs.

* * *

><p><strong>Crystal's P.O.V.<strong>

My eyes cracked open to a sound I heard out in the hall. _…Is it time to wake up yet?_ Seeing how Ace wasn't in my room with the air horn yet, I decided to close my eyes a bit longer till he came…and I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

Downstairs in the kitchen, I quickly drank a glass of milk and headed towards the guest room area. Going to where Zero, Ren and Ace were staying, I saw that all their rooms were shut and silent. _Maybe I should knock…? Er…but that would be disturbing them… Then again, Ace has been disturbing our sleep for the past three months…_ Walking towards Ace's door, I lifted my hand to knock when the door next to Ace's room opened and Ren appeared. "Oh hey Ren…um…where's Ace?"

"About that Anrya-chan," Ren said, "Zero and Ace just left a while ago to meet with a guest asking the organization for a favor. I was just about to leave when I sensed you."

"Oh, ok," I replied.

"Then I'll be taking my leave now Anrya-chan," Ren said. "Please be up and ready with the rest of your family by 8 a.m. Zero-san and Ace will be here by then, as well as I. We have a task to give you…well more specifically for your technicians."

"Uh, ok." I was going to ask more about the task he, Zero, and Ace were going to give, but I held my tongue. With Ren leaving the mansion, it was quiet again. Heading for the stairs to sleep once more, I noticed how clean the first floor was. _Huh…wasn't it a bit messier before? Someone must've cleaned it up a bit here. Hm, maybe it was Gray?_ Too tired to think further, I headed back upstairs, set myalarm to 7 a.m., and went to sleep.

_-7 a.m.-_

_Be-be-be-beep, be-be-be-beep_ My alarm clock rang. _7 a.m. already?_ Getting out of bed, I quickly ran to everyone's bedroom and woke each person up, telling them to be down by 8. I then returned to my room and cleaned myself up. After doing what I had to, I met everyone downstairs in the living room.

"Hey, how come we don't have training today?" Esa asked. It was the first thing I was asked as I stepped into the room.

"Yeah, I noticed that the air horn didn't go off today…" Selina said.

"Not that we want to hear that air horn," Jasmine added.

"At least we got more sleep," Crystal happily said. Rai nodded in agreement. Darke and Ryo, as usual, had no comment.

"Oh yeah, Anrya, why did we have to meet here?" Esa questioned.

"Well you see…" I began to tell everyone the morning's events.

"So…this 'task' has _what_ to do with us?" Jasmine said.

"I have no idea," I admitted, "But I might as well tell Gris and Gray about it. Oh, you guys can get something to eat from the kitchen or chill out a bit; I'll go tell Gris and Gray the news."

"I'm coming with you," Esa said, "I'm curious about what their rooms look like."

"Well I'm actually going to their lab…"

In the end, somehow, everyone came along.

Walking towards Gris and Gray's lab door marked: _Keep Out!_ I opened the door and entered. There on a wheelie-chair, in front of the computer sat Gray, papers in hand. Her chair was tipped back perilously, but I didn't chastise her about it.

"What," Gray started off.

"Well, good morning, first of all Gray," I started off, "Second, did Zero, Ren or Ace mention something about a 'task' to you guys?"

"Good morning and no."

"I might as well tell you then." I repeated the story I told the others earlier.

"Okay I'll tell Gris then," Gray indifferently said. She returned to her papers and from time to time, she glanced at her computer screen. After a while, Gris sighed and said, "Are you guys going to just stand there the whole time while I work? It's bothering me."

"Can we look around?" Esa asked.

"Fine, but just don't touch anything."

"Can I—" Rai started.

"No," Gray said.

"I didn't ask anything yet!" Rai said.

"Were you going to ask about the door that led downstairs?" Gray questioned without turning her head.

"No."

"Then ask your question again."

"Can I try out that cool looking machine over there by the corner table?" Rai asked eagerly.

"No," Gray answered. "Did you not hear me say _'don't touch anything'_?"

_Ding dong_ Upstairs, the doorbell rang from the front entrance.

"It's probably them," I said, glancing back. "I'm gonna get the door." Leaving Gris and Gray's lab, I went upstairs and opened the door.

"Good morning Anrya-chan~" came the voice of none other than Zero.

"Hey, I see you're up and ready! A bummer we can't have training this morning," Ace commented.

"Good morning," Ren said.

"Oh yeah good morning…and yeah…uh…a bummer we can't have training huh." _A bummer huh, I can take a break from training any day._

"Hey," said Gray from behind, "So what's your 'task' for me and Gris?" Gray must've left her place at the lab right after I did. She kept expression out of her face as she asked this.

Ace whistled. "Right to the point."

Gray just gave a stare. "Just hurry up and tell me. I have stuff to do."

"It looks like we'll be keeping it brief then," Ace said, looking at Zero and Ren. Then turning back to Gray he said, "We'll explain to you inside."

Zero, Ren, and Ace came in.

Going to the living room for a talk, Zero, Ren, Ace, Gray, Gris, Esa, Jasmine, and I sat. The others were either in the kitchen, the lab, or elsewhere.

"I shall be brief in this as Ace has said," Ren said. "To put it simply, a…customer of ours requested a repair and an upgrade of 700 different guns and weapons…"

_Woah_, I thought.

"…and we need your technicians to do us a favor in lending a hand in the repair."

"Hmph, why do you need our help?" Gray questioned, "I'm quite sure you should have plenty of technicians in your organization, or people to hire."

"Yes, that is true in normal circumstances, but the problem with this request was the time limit."

"What was the time limit Ren?" I curiously asked.

"Three days."

I gaped.

"It's not that shocking to be requested like that, but sometimes it can be rather bothersome. With our organization on new experimentations and works, a job like this hinders us. Plus even if we were to hire other technicians it would take time for them to come to us, and some may question why 700 guns needed repairs and upgrades…"

"So you're saying you want us to do the work?" Gray asked, "Why don't you just hire those people anyways?"

"Time and money are not things to be frivolously used."

"Hmph~" Gray crossed her legs. "Let's say we do decide to help…how many are we required to fix and what do we get from helping you?"

Zero smiled and spoke. "Well Gray-chan, first of all, I think you are required to do this due to our contract. As for how many to fix…we'll give you…100 to fix and upgrade. You can split the job fifty-fifty between your brother and somehow manage time to finish them in three days~ As for what you get for doing the job…a pat on the back for a job well done~"

Gray raised an eyebrow.

"Hmhmhm~ I was just poking fun at you Gray-chan, we'll give you a part of the payment for this task. But do remember that if you don't succeed, there may be consequences…" I opened my mouth to ask about the consequences but was cut off by Zero. "We'll be taking our leave now~" Zero turned to Ace. "Ace-kun, will you hand the box of guns to Gris-kun and Gray-chan~?"

"Sure thing."

"Well," Zero said, "It looks like you better start soon…time's ticking~" Zero walked out of the mansion in a flourish along with Ren and Ace.

"That annoying white-haired bastard…acting all high and mighty…" Gray grumbled under her breath.

We watched from inside as the three entered a car parked in front of our mansion. Ace took out a box and walked towards us, the other two remaining in the car.

"Lead me to your lab," Ace said, "There's more than one box coming."

Grudgingly, Gray led Ace to her own lab.

* * *

><p><strong>Rai's P.O.V.<strong>

_-Fifteen minutes before-_

Everyone had left the lab at the sound of the doorbell ringing. I was the only one remaining. Peeking outside, I saw that Zero, Ren, Ace, Gray, Gris, Esa, Jasmine, and Anrya were headed towards the living room while the others either went to the kitchen or upstairs. I took this as a chance to look around the lab less consciously. Poking through the items around, I observed them with curiosity. _I wonder what these do…_ Picking one object up but miscalculating its weight, I dropped it back down right onto my finger. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow…" I placed the object back to its original place and, I took interest to the door that led downstairs. I decided to check it out. Going down the stairs, I turned a corner to see an impressive room. It was enormous. The lab itself was huge, but the downstairs lab was even bigger. The room was filled with many items and machinery, and the place was pretty neat too. "Wow," I mumbled. Looking around at Gris and Gray's work, I was pretty amazed. _So this is what they do! These things look so cool!_ Looking around for a bit longer, I decided I should leave. Leaving the lower lab to the upper lab, I left the room and headed for the kitchen for a snack. Entering the kitchen, I faintly heard Ace's voice: _"Lead me to your lab. There's more than one box coming."_

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

After all the boxes were delivered, Ace left with Zero and Ren. I went into the kitchen, ate breakfast, went upstairs, and rested for the rest of the day…

* * *

><p><em>-Night- <em>

Gray stood up from her work to take a break. Letting out a breath of air, she stretched out her limbs and glanced at the clock: **12:35 a.m.** "Hey Gris," Gray said, turning to her brother, "I'm gonna go for a quick break. You want anything to eat or drink?" Gris continued working on the guns. Without stopping from his work or turning his head, he said, "I'll just have water." Gray shrugged and left the lower lab. Heading for the kitchen, Gray quickly scanned through her mind of how many guns were repaired, how many were not, and how many were yet to be upgraded. _Well so far during the day, Gris and I managed to repair 67 guns. Seeing how the only damage from them were either some missing or broken parts, or it being worn out from long use, I say we should have all of them repaired by the morning. But honestly, couldn't the owner of these guns just order new sets instead of sending their older sets for repair? Hmph, the owner must be a Scrooge. Well, after that, we'll just need to upgrade their guns specially…though Zero never specified what kind of upgrade…I guess we'll decide how to upgrade it._ Reaching the kitchen, Gray took out a tray from the lower cabinet and placed it on a table. _Oh, it seems like I accidentally brought these prototypes along with me._ In her hand, Gray held three silver-gray, oddly-oval-and-capsule-shaped "prototypes". Seeing how it prevented her from using both her hands fully, Gray placed them down by the windowsill and reminded herself to take it back with her. The inconvenience of not having any pockets made her frown for a moment. Quickly stacking some food and drinks on the tray, Gray grabbed some napkins too. Gray was about to bring them to the lab when she decided to quickly check around the house to see that all was secure and no one was creeping in. After a quick inspection and good results, Gray took the tray from the table and went for the lab.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

Waking up at 7 a.m., the day went on pretty smoothly. In the morning I learned that during the days Gris and Gray were to do their "assignment"; Ace wouldn't torture us with the air horn. I also learned that for the next two days, Ren would be educating us about the important mafia families and mafia culture. In the morning from 10 a.m. to 12 a.m., Ren taught us at the library on the fourth floor. During that lesson, I asked Ren a question I'd been having on my mind since yesterday:

"Um Ren," I asked.

"What is it Anrya-chan?" he asked.

"I've been having a question I've wanted to ask…"

"Is it important or related to this lesson?"

"Uh, yes and no."

"Then ask quickly, I don't want to keep the others waiting."

Glancing at the others at the table with me, I saw that they took advantage of this quick break. Rai took this time to stretch his limbs, Esa and Jasmine chatted amongst themselves, Crystal continued her anime doodling, Darke and Ryo remained silent on the far end of the table, and Selina just waited. I turned back to Ren. "Well my question was, what would the "consequences" be if you failed to carry out another mafia family's task?"

Ren raised an eyebrow. "Well that depends on the task. If the task is big or important, I believe the consequences would be harsher than a task that is small or not important. But then again, the consequences can be based on that person's personality. Some people in the mafia are more aggressive than the others." Looking around and then back at Anrya, Ren said, "I suppose this has to do with the task given to your technicians."

I nodded. "I was just wondering…what if we failed and stuff…" Some of the others glanced at me and then back at Ren.

"I wouldn't worry too much about that. I'm quite sure your technicians will _not_ fail because first of all they are perfectly capable, and second of all, we wouldn't give you an impossible task to do from the start." Ren adjusted his glasses. "But if you would like some examples of consequences these are some: Payment of money, payment of something or some things specific, an angry enemy(s), a fight, being cursed at, owing them a favor, and death or a kill on sight request or assassination. But of course the last one is a bit drastic. In some cases and maybe in your case as well, the client may just let you off with your failure. A bit disappointed and all, but no harsh feelings…"

"Oh." The others around me seemed to have that reaction as well.

"The task will not fail, now back to the lesson then," Ren said. "In the Vongola Family…"

At the end of the lesson, we were all relieved to go to lunch. Learning about different families and details about them is great and all, but sometimes it's not so interesting when you already knew some of the details and it was the summer time. We ate our lunch, which was of great variety, and went our separate ways after. Before everyone could wander off though, I assigned a task for Darke and Crystal.

"Darke, Crystal," I said before Darke could disappear and Crystal could go upstairs, "do you guys mind doing me a favor?"

"What," Crystal said.

"Well can you guys go to the nearest market or store, and do some grocery shopping for me?"

"Why?" Crystal asked.

"We're low on food."

"Can't you just go?"

"No. Anyways Darke will be going with you."

"Can't he just go alone?"

I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Help him out?"

"Why? He'll be fine. Someone will be going with him in the car anyways."

"There is no one to drive him since Gris and Gray need to work."

"So how do you expect _us_ to go there?"

"Well we do have a motorcycle, but since you guys can't ride that, we have bicycles with baskets on the front."

Crystal scowled at me. Sighing, I thought of what I should do about this situation.

"Anyways, we don't know the routes and roads in this area, so how do you expect us to find a store?" Crystal demanded.

I held out a map to them. "Do you have good map reading skills and a sense of direction?"

"No."

I spotted Esa and Jasmine walking away. "Hey Esa, Jasmine, do you guys have good map reading skills or a sense of direction?" They both shook their heads. Giving up on those two, I looked for other candidates. No one else was around. Turning back to Crystal and Darke I said, "Please can you go? We _really_ need food supplies…and plus you can spend the extra money on candy or whatever else you want~"

Crystal considered the offer, but I could tell she already took the bait. The mention of candy must've gotten her. "Fine, I'll go with Darke," Crystal said, "But what do we need to buy?"

I handed Crystal a list of things she needed to buy, and the money for it as well.

"'Kay, I'll buy these stuff…but I'm getting some candy and food with the leftover money~!"

I sighed. "Help yourself, but be sure to buy candy _after_ you buy the things listed on the list I gave you."

"Okay," Crystal said as she started out the door. Darke followed close behind.

"The bikes are in the shed by the pool!" I hollered behind them. Then they were gone. Turning away from the door, I headed towards the kitchen to grab a quick snack. As I went to get something from the refrigerator, I noticed that on the window sill, there were three gray-ish looking…were they pebbles? Unsure if it belonged to someone, I moved them to the kitchen table just in case someone was missing them. Then grabbing my snack, I left to go upstairs to the library and read.

"Oi, Anrya-chan!" I heard Rai say from up the stairs.

"What."

"Can I go out a bit or something?"

"Crystal and Darke just went out to run some errands for me at a town. If you want to go give them a hand you're welcome to."

"Sure!" Rai said. He then rushed past me to escape to the great outdoors.

"There are bikes in the shed by the pool," I said, repeating what I said to Crystal and Darke, "Use that to get to town." Then turning back towards the stairs, I went up.

* * *

><p><strong>Rai's P.O.V.<strong>

As I went to leave, I passed by the kitchen. There on the table, something caught my eye. _Pebbles?_ _That's weird…_ Frowning for a moment, I went to the kitchen table and lifted one of the pebbles up. After looking it over a bit, I shrugged and put it back down. Then I left for the door.

Outside of the mansion, I walked towards the shed that was by the pool. Opening the doors, I saw a row of bikes in different colors. Picking the green bike, I hopped on and went towards town.

* * *

><p>A girl walked through town. Just from her appearances alone, one could tell she wasn't from Japan. Her hair was blonde, long and wavy with a golden tint, and her eyes were a lapis-blue. She was tall and slender in figure, and the way in which she walked was regal. This girl looked around her teens.<p>

"Tch," said the girl, "Why are we here Ty?"

"Well Miss Ada, your father wanted you to spend your time sight-seeing Japan while he did his work here—"

"Yeah, I get that part," the girl Ada snapped, "but why did we need to come to an ordinary town when could've just stayed in Tokyo or went to a more interesting place?"

"The mountains of Japan supposedly have great views of their landscapes, and the air at the top is quite—"

"That's great and all, but I'm not in the mood to get all worked up and sweaty by going up a mountain. So I'll pass on any mountain sight-seeing."

"As you wish," Ty said.

"Do you mind if I go around the town a bit before I have to get stuffed into that car again?"

"Of course Miss Ada, I will be accompanying you wherever you chose to go—"

"I'll go around town by myself," Ada cut in, "I don't need a babysitter."

"But Miss, I must keep watch over you at all times. I was hired to watch over you at all times after all."

"You're just a temporary guard. I told my dad that I didn't want any guards, but _just_ because we're in a new country, he sticks me with you."

"I see you aren't quite used to having a guard with you at all times Miss Ada. Though I understand you are feeling uncomfortable, please let me accompany you."

The girl Ada made a face. "Fine, but carry my bags for me."

"Yes Miss." Ty went into the car to retrieve Ada's bags. Collecting her bags, he came out of the car and locked the doors. "Ok Miss Ada let us—" Ty looked at the empty spot that Ada was standing on moments ago. "Ahhh! Miss Ada, where did you go?"

* * *

><p>"Hey, are you listening to me!" Crystal gave an irritated glance at Darke. Still riding on their bikes, Crystal asked Darke the question again. "Do you know where we're going and if we're there yet?"<p>

"…Just follow me," Darke said after a moment of silence.

Hoping that they weren't going the wrong way, Crystal gave a scowl and followed after Darke.

After a while, Crystal and Darke entered a town that was nestled not so far from the base of a mountain. Slowing their bikes to a stop, the two took a moment to look around their surroundings. The town that they've come to was an ordinary town, maybe a bit larger than most towns, but an ordinary town nonetheless. The town had a decent neighborhood with houses neatly lined around the streets, and some stores around. On the other end of the town was a school…no…three schools. The three schools were pretty close to each other that from Crystal and Darke's vantage point, it looked almost like a single, big school. This town was called Ichimu Gaiku.

"Huh, Ichimu…Gaiku," Crystal said, reading a sign post, "That's the town's name? Huh, wonder what it means."

"A dreamland," Darke spoke.

"What?"

"Ichimu means dream…gaiku means land…therefore "Dreamland" is the name of this town."

"Cool name, but why would the town be named "Dreamland"? I don't see anything special."

Darke, finished talking and ignoring Crystal's question, went ahead to find the closest store.

_Che, he could've at least waited for me_ Crystal thought with slight irritation _Ignoring people…so annoying! I guess I'll just ask someone about the town of "Ichimu Gaiku" later._ Crystal then followed behind Darke through the streets.

Not long after they had entered the town of Ichimu Gaiku, Crystal and Darke had spotted a huge grocery shopping store from a block off. The grocery store was, as the townspeople had said, in the general shopping district area of the town, so if they needed anything else specific, they could go around the shopping district. Soon, Crystal and Darke had come to the end of the block.

"Ah! I can see the shopping district from here! We're almost there!" Crystal speed up next to Darke and got ready to turn the corner…and that was when a girl ran out right in front of them from the shopping district area. The girl must've not seen the two bikers as she turned the corner for she cried out in surprise.

"Ah!"

Screeching to a sudden stop, Crystal and Darke stopped in front of the girl.

"Whoa! Hey watch where you're going!" Crystal said to the girl.

The girl, still surprised, just said, "Yeah, ok." After a few moments though, the girl got over the shock and returned to her normal self. The girl straightened out her hair and neatened her clothing. She then looked over at the two people, and saw Darke who calmly sat on bike with a cool air. To the girl, the boy was handsome. He wore dark clothing as if the night itself was his cloak, and his scarf and goggles gave him a stylish yet mysterious look. The girl blushed deeply as she saw Darke. Opening her mouth, the girl spoke to Darke. "Hi, my name is Ada Giovenello, um thanks for stopping and not running me down…um…what's your name?"

Darke's expression could not be seen through his goggles, but with an air of indifference, Darke answered, "Darke."

"Oh, well nice to meet you Darke." _Oh my god he looks so hot!_

"Hey," Crystal cut in, "Can you be careful where you go? I don't want to hit people on the road."

Ada gave a glance towards Crystal. "And who might you be?" Then with a hint of jealousy in her voice she also asked, "Are you Darke's boyfriend or something?"

Crystal made a face. "Boyfriend? No." Then after a moment she said, "My name is Crystal."

"Oh, well Crystal," Ada started, "Are you Darke's friend then?"

Crystal blinked and thought a moment. _Well I can't say I'm that friendly with Darke, but just saying flat-out no is weird…so I guess…_ "Yeah, he's just_ a friend_." _Why are we having this conversation?_

"Ok then," said Ada sounding a bit more upbeat. _Hmph, I don't know if this girl Crystal is lying or not, but it sounds too good to be true when she said that she was just "a friend" to that hottie over there._ "So let me ask you one more thing Crystal," Ada said.

Crystal wasn't in the mood to be playing question and answer, but just complied for the sake of getting the tiring situation over with. "What," Crystal replied, irritated.

"Do you guys live close by here?" Ada's eye scanned them both once over. "I mean I'm guessing you do live close by…and close to each other since you're riding your bikes here…together and all…"

_Can't say anything about the base so…_ "Yeah we live close by."

"And near each other~?"

Crystal scowled. "Yeah, I guess you can say that."

"So you guys shop together here often~?" _Or maybe they just go to the movies as "friends" and hang out. If that was the circumstance then one, that would be called "going out" or "dating". Anyways, that scrawny girl there doesn't seem fit for Darke._

Crystal just let out a breath. "We're just here to run an errand for our…parents. They need some items from the grocery." _Not completely a lie. Now go away._

Ada smiled sweetly. "Ok." _Uh huh. I'm pretty sure what you're saying is BS. Yeah, because your parents need the EXACT same items to live their lives. Right._

"Excuse us, but we've got to go," Crystal said. The irritation was clear in her voice. "If you don't mind can you _move_?"

Ada smirked. Oh she got the message. But before she left, Ada turned to Darke and said, "Well it was nice meeting you Darke~! Hope we can meet again~" Ada then took out a piece of paper and a writing utensil and wrote something down on the piece of paper. Then strutting over with a slight swing of her waist, she handed Darke the paper and winked. Then she started to walk away with a "call me" hand signal by her ear.

All throughout this Crystal thought the words: _Blonde_ _Bitch. Slut. _and _Annoying. _Then without further ado, Crystal put her bike back into motion. "Let's get this over with."

* * *

><p>Rai was riding through the town "Ichimu Gaiku" (which he thought was a pretty cool name for a town) as he searched for Crystal and Darke. <em>Hm, where are they? I'm pretty sure I rode fast enough to catch up to them…<em> As Rai continued to ride his bike contemplating whether he should give up his search or not, he rode by a pretty blonde girl who strode by him with a regal air and a smug look on her face. Rai whistled appreciatively as he passed by her. Then he continued his search from Crystal and Dakre. After five more minutes of searching he decided that he would sight-see through the town and if he somehow bumped into Crystal and Darke, it would be great. If not…no problem.

"Stop!" a voice rang out. It was from a man dressed quite promptly, holding multiple handbags and shopping bags, and standing directly in front of Rai's path.

Rai screeched to a stop and blinked. _Who is this guy? And why is he carrying…handbags and shopping bags?_

"Excuse me young lad…"

_Young lad? Who even speaks like that these days?_

"…have you happened to see a young beautiful lady with long golden hair and lapis-blue eyes wandering around town? She's in her teens like you."

Rai blinked. "Yeah, I passed by her a moment ago…"

"Where did she go?"

"Uh…that way." Rai pointed at the general direction the pretty girl he had seen walk off to.

"Thank you! Or arigato as your country would say!" And the man sped off.

Rai stood there dumbfounded for a moment, but snapped out of it and continued his ride through the town.

At one point, Rai came across a huge lake near the town. The lake was fairly circular in shape and its water was very clear and blue. It was so clear that you could basically see to the bottom (which showed that the lake wasn't too deep). This lake was called Kesshou Kagami or "Crystal Mirror". _A fitting name_ Rai thought as he read the information board about the lake. Apparently this lake used to be connected to the river that came from the mountains, and another river that came out of the lake itself. This lake sustained water that was very clear, clean and drinkable, which was a good thing for the people of the older days_, _hence why the lake was named "Crystal Mirror". The town named "Dreamland" was not only called "Dreamland" for its beautiful surroundings, useful resources, and clean air, but for the lake itself as well. Rai turned away from the information board. All around the lake there were people. Some were taking pictures, others were having picnics, some were biking… _Wait they have a biking trail here?_ Rai broke out into a grin. "I'm gonna go for a ride!"

* * *

><p>"Miss Ada, you really shouldn't have gone off on your own," Ty chastised lightly. Ty and Ada were in the car driving back to their hotel. After Ty had found Ada and had a talk with her, they had gone into the car and headed home.<p>

Ada remained quiet for a moment. Then with her usual attitude she said, "Whatever." Then they rode in silence for a while until Ada broke the silence with a question. "Can we come back here more often Ty?"

Ty gave a glance at Ada's direction through the front mirror. "I don't know how much longer I will be your guard, but yes, you can visit here anytime Miss Ada."

"Hm, do you think I may be able to stay in Japan longer?"

"I believe so."

"How about going to school here? Specifically this town."

Ty looked surprised. "Why so suddenly Miss Ada? I thought you did not prefer it here."

"Well now I found interest in this place."

"That I do not know. You would have to consult with your father for that matter."

"I guess I will." _Convincing dad will be a piece of cake. I can get to his soft spots real easy. _Ada smirked. _Just a little talk about education and so on, and I'll be a transfer student here no time~_

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

"Pffft…" sighing, I put down the book I was reading and stretched out on the comfy sofa of the library. _When are those two coming back?_ It had been two hours since the two had left. I decided to go downstairs and read in the living room instead. Walking down four flights of stairs, I arrived downstairs and headed for the livingroom. "Huh?" On the table in the living room sat several packages marked: Anrya. Esa. Jasmine. Crystal. Selina. Rai. Darke. Ryo. Gray. Gris. On top of those was a letter. Picking it up, I read it. "No way."

* * *

><p><strong>Crystal's P.O.V.<strong>

_I could really use a bed now._ I glumly thought. I was walking my bike alongside Darke as we rode up the mountain to the base. So far my day wasn't as great as I would've liked it to be. First thing that ticked me off was the fact I had to run this shopping errand with Darke when I could've stayed in and watched some anime. The second thing that ticked me off was that blonde girl named Ada who _just_ had to delay our schedule. The last thing that ticked me off was the incident from before. This is how it went: Darke and I were lugging the grocery items on our bike baskets. I was actually in a decent mood then since I had a lollipop, that I bought with the spare money, in my mouth.

"The uphill is getting steep, walk your bike," Darke had said.

I don't like being commanded by anyone to do something, Darke was no exception. He could've asked more nicely. Though he didn't talk much, that didn't give him the excuse to command me. Also, I was more comfortable riding on the bike than walking since it was a bit faster and easier. Well I guess I should've listened to him even though I didn't want to because when the slope got steeper momentarily, I had to swerve my bike a bit and the eggs in my bike fell out…Yeah whoopdie-doo. That really improved my mood. The fact that Darke just glanced in my direction as if to say "I told you so" made it worse. So we turned back around, bought the eggs again, and went back uphill. And here I am now, walking my bike up alongside Darke. The mansion was just up ahead (thank God) so I hurried along. _Can't wait until I'm in._

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

I saw Crystal and Darke enter the mansion. Greeting them and thanking them for the errand, I quickly put away the grocery. Crystal didn't seem too upbeat, but I later found out why. Before their arrival, Rai had arrived home earlier and excitedly mention something about a huge, clear lake and a bike trail.

"Hey guys," I said to everyone, "I, uh, we got a package this morning from an unknown sender which I guess is Zero and his crew, saying we're going to school."

There was a moment of silence. I almost laughed aloud. When I first got the package and read the letter, I was shocked too, but then it hit me that this was a normal thing to do. Kids were supposed to go to school. The fact that it surprised me made me laugh.

"Well it's normal to go to school you know," I said to the others. "Ren wrote us a letter. This is what it says:

_Dear Anrya and the members of the Pericoloso Family,_

_I have sent a package for every member of the family who are required to go to school by law. Don't be too shocked by this (though you shouldn't be since any normal person goes to school) because every family should be knowledgeable in every field of life possible, studies being one of them. Therefore you have been signed up to attend Ichimu Elementary School, Ichimu Middle School, or Ichimu High School. You have all been assigned to your classes and your schedule and uniform are in the package sent. The beginning of the semester has already begun a while ago, but it shouldn't be too hard to catch up. As transfer students, you will be helped and guided if necessary by the instructors and fellow peers. If you wish to change one of your electives in your schedule you may speak with the school counselor. Other than that, your schedules should be quite satisfactory and fitting to your level of knowledge. You have all been put into as many of the same classes as possible (of course that also depends on your grade), and we will still hold to our contract and supervise you until the contract terminates. You will begin school starting from next Monday, October 15. School time and period sessions vary slightly depending on the school. Please be there on time, ready, and properly dressed._

_ -Ren_

And that's it." Finishing the letter, I closed it and put it away again. "Ok, let's take a look at our uniforms and schedules." I grinned. It was my first time going to a school that required a specific uniform and to be honest, it was quite exciting. Each of us then opened our packages and checked out the stuff. In each package there was a school uniform, a schedule, and a set of gym clothes. My school uniform consisted of a white blouse, a red skirt that stopped mid-thigh, and a cape that indicated what grade you were in. Ninth graders, in this school, got a red cape lined with gold on the edges. As for my gym clothes, they were red and white as well: Red shorts, White T-shirt. I guessed that the school we were going to wasn't too strict on the uniform wear seeing how you could wear any type of shoes, jackets, or hats if it was appropriate at that time or place. Selina had the same uniform as me.

"Hey," said Crystal, "Our school uniform isn't too bad. It's cute in a way." Crystal lifted up an identical uniform to mine except that her cape was red with a green lining. Crystal, Esa, and Jasmine all had identical uniforms since they were all in the same grade.

"Hey Anrya, Selina, you have—well sort of—the same school uniform as us," Esa said, "You're in our school!"

"Did they make a mistake?" Crystal questioned, "Aren't you guys high school?"

"Yeah," I replied, "But no, they didn't mess up. In Japan, the school system for middle school goes from seventh grade to ninth grade."

"Oh ok."

"Hey our uniforms are different," Rai said, holding up his uniform. His uniform consisted of a white collared shirt, navy blue slacks, a navy blue tie, and a navy blue coat with an emblem on it indicating the grade he was in.

"Must be because you're in high school," I pointed out.

Rai nodded.

Darke took out an identical uniform.

The only one who wasn't in the same school building with another person was Ryo. Ryo was attending Ichimu Elementary School. As for him, his school didn't have much of a uniform. They had a yellow school T-shirt with the words: _Ichimu Elementary School_ written in green on the shirt, but other than that, they could basically wear anything.

"Looks like Ichimu's Elementary School's color are yellow and green, the middle school is red and white, and high school is navy blue and white," Selina said in observation.

"Yeah, and the grade we're in is indicated by either our capes or the emblem," I said.

We buzzed with conversation.

"Hey there's a package for Gris and Gray too!" Rai called out. We all sort of stared, but Gris and Gray were in twelfth grade after all. "Should I tell them about it?" Rai asked.

I shrugged and said, "Why not?"

So Rai went to the lab where Gris and Gray were. Then he came back. "…Uh I think they were kind of busy so they weren't quite paying attention…but I did leave their packages there."

"Huh? What do you mean they weren't paying attention?" I asked, "I'm sure they're busy and all but you could've easily told them."

"I don't think so…" Rai started. "I told them the news and all they ever answered was: _Yeah, ok_. They I asked them if they heard me and they answered the same thing…so…I said "my hair is a blue teddy bear" and they answered: _Yeah, ok_…so I'm pretty sure they didn't hear me."

I laughed. "They'll eventually see it, so I wouldn't worry about it." After that we all dispersed and continued our day.

* * *

><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

So I woke up to a nice and beautiful morning…with a gunshot. Don't worry, it wasn't in my room thank God, but I heard it outside. "What's going on now," I muttered. Throwing on some clothes, I headed downstairs. At the ground floor I saw Anrya. "Hey Anrya, what's going on? I heard a gunshot."

"Gray and Gris are just testing out their final prototype," Anrya answered.

"They finished fixing and upgrading all those guns?"

"Yeah. They like to finish their work quickly and efficiently and then test them just in case they've missed something or they need a touch-up."

"Wow. They must've worked hard. They were holed up in that lab for almost three days straight…"

"I know right. If that was me, I would've gone crazy."

Hungry, I went into the kitchen. I grabbed a quick breakfast and headed back out.

"Esa," Anrya called me, "can you help me clean up the house a bit? The client is coming today to pick up his materials and I don't want the house to be a mess."

"What about the others?"

"Well, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina went out to town to go to the hair salon, Rai is out biking and, for some reason, skipping stones and stuff, and Gris and Gray are out shooting, Darke is…actually I don't know where he is. I only have you left."

"Wait, why are Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina at the hair salon and why is Rai out biking?"

"Well, Jasmine and Crystal had money from their parents to do stuff they wanted with it (cause no way am I giving them money for _that_ reason. Hair salon prices are mad high) so they decided to color and dye their hair, and Selina's there so that they don't get lost or wander too much. As for Rai, I would've held him back and asked for help, but he grabbed some pebble-things on kitchen table and left pretty early saying that he'll be back as soon as possible to help."

"So _I'm _gonna be the only one helping you out?" I said with a slight grumble.

"Well kind of yeah. But don't worry, Ryo is helping out too.

Whoops, I almost completely forgot about Ryo. He's kind of like a ghost sometimes, not leaving much of an impression on anyone. _Well at least I won't be working completely alone._ "I'll help out a bit I guess."

"Thanks," Anrya said with a sigh of relief, "The house is mostly clean, but if you can neaten out the living room and the bedrooms that would be great."

"Sure." I got to work.

* * *

><p><strong>Gray's P.O.V.<strong>

_BAM. BAM. BAM._ The hand pistol in my hand fired three shots into the tree. _Hm, not bad for an upgrade, but I'll have to tune it up a bit more._ Beside me, my twin brother Gris tested out the snipers.

"Hey Gris, how are the silencers on the snipers doing?"

"It's good. I wonder if we can find a way to make it quieter though." My brother concentrated again and shot at the tree. _SNIP. SNIP._ The bullets flew and hit the target fairly quietly. On impact they made a muffled sound.

"I'm gonna go in and give this a tune up ok?" I told Gris. "Test out the rest of the guns for me alright?"

"Got it."

Heading back in, I saw Anrya, Esa, and Ryo cleaning the house.

"—Geez, baka-Rai and the others get to take it easy. Lucky. But what does baka-Rai possibly have to go skipping stones for? He could always find another time to skip his little pebble-things." Esa grumbled in a low mutter as she neatened out the pillows on the couch.

I snickered. "Enjoy cleaning Hime-chan~!"

Esa whipped her head towards my direction. "Huh, what? Why are you calling me "princess"?"

"Well seeing you grumble about something as simple as cleaning made me think of a princess who didn't like to get her hands dirty~ Cute."

Esa glared at me. "I don't have a problem with cleaning. I was just annoyed a bit how the others could go around and play while I cleaned up."

I waved my hand. "Yeah, yeah. Just keep cleaning Hime-chan~" I walked away from Esa and headed towards the lab. Behind me I could hear Esa muttering as she fluffed out the pillows a bit more strongly than needed. Then I heard Anrya coming in. They murmured a bit. The last thing I heard was:

"Don't feel bad about being called princess Esa, I'm pretty sure Gray was joking around. She probably has her own way in showing that she likes you."

I smirked and smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

The client came around one in the afternoon. I had to go through all the formalities and yada-yada. Basically it was pretty boring. _Man, I could be spending my day more usefully. This is stupid._ So we chatted, talked, ate, acted all formal and stuff, and Gris and Gray demonstrated the weapons… In my opinion, the demonstrations of the guns were the only fun part. Finally the client left and left us in peace.

"God that was boring," Jasmine commented. She tugged at her hair as she said this. She and Crystal had returned from the hair salon a while before the client had arrived. Crystal dyed her hair brown and Jasmine highlighted her hair red. Unfortunately, Jasmine's hair coloring had gotten damaged due to some circumstances…

"Ugh, these fading red highlights are bothering me," Jasmine muttered.

"I'm really sorry about that Jasmine," I said, meaning it. "I really hadn't meant to damage your hair but…"

"Whatever," Jasmine said, "it's fine, but you owe me."

"Uh, ok." So I guess you're wondering what happened right? Well this is how the story of how Jasmine's hair getting damaged went. As Esa, Ryo and I were cleaning, we were abruptly interrupted by a frantic Gray. She went babbling and swearing about how she just remembered that she left three prototype explosives unattended by the kitchen window sill and how they were missing now. Then I remembered about how I saw those three pebble-shaped things. I told her that I thought they were rocks or something and left them on the kitchen table for anyone to take back (just in case someone wanted it or it was somebody's). She said that they weren't there anymore and I was like "Of course they're not, they were taken by…" then I froze. We all realized that by then, Rai had already taken those stones to go "skipping stones" but of course in this case it would be "skipping explosives, causing mass destruction and also getting arrested" and yeah…So we did what was natural. Freak out. After we had calmed down though, Gray made us both go out and retrieve Rai _before_ he threw those stones into the water and caused destruction.

"But he couldn't possibly cause that much destruction seeing how those small explosives would be thrown into the water," I said. "I mean if it was at something else, it would be a different story, but he's just throwing it into the water. The worst he'll get is a water explosion and an arrest. And also, it's been some time since he left. What if he already threw them?" _I'm pretty sure that if he already threw it, he wouldn't be too stupid enough to repeat the same action two more times._

"Are you saying it's ok to let one of your guardians go to the police?" Gray demanded.

"Of course not! I wouldn't let him get send to jail and be all alone without—"

"What it they interrogate him? He won't have an explanation for where or how he got those explosives or why he threw them! He'll probably be so freaked out that he might let his tongue go loose and tell those policemen everything! Eventually the evidence would lead up to here and this place would be raided, my lab would be messed up and all my precious study would go to waste! He better not get caught by the police! If my research ever gets harmed I'll rip him to shreds!"

_So that was the reason…_ "Ok then…" Glancing at Esa, I knew I wasn't the only one getting the scary vibe from Gray.

"Both of you, go and retrieve Rai!" Gray said. "Hopefully he hasn't thrown one of those explosives yet or dropped them or hurt anyone or gotten captured by the police."

"But he's been gone for so long that I think he already threw those stones…" I mumbled.

"I don't care! Drag him back here so I can dispose of those explosives correctly. He _better_ not have gotten caught by the police."

"Geez, do I have to go too?" Esa asked.

"Do you have a choice?" Gray started to get that evil vibe again.

Esa must've sensed that too. I'm pretty sure she also remembered how well Gray shot a gun. "Fine. I guess it'll be more effective splitting up and covering more ground. But I'm warning you, I don't have the greatest sense of direction so don't blame me."

"Let's go Esa," I said. And that how we ended up looking for Rai all around the town of Ichimu Gaiku, and ended up going around all the bike trails there. Then we finally found him by the lake later on.

"Oh my God, I'm gonna strangle that baka!" Esa huffed. Both she and I were worn out from the long and rough bike trails and searches.

"I think I'm going to strangle him too," I gasped, out of breath.

Rai was walking around the lake when he saw us. Lifting up his arm he waved at us. "Hey Anrya-chan, Esa-chan, wanna join me in rock skipping?"

We pedaled over to his location as fast as possible.

"HELL NO!" Esa growled. "I'm not in the mood to get arrested. Next time you take something; look at what you're taking and take things that are only yours baka-Rai!"

Rai looked confused so I filled him in. "Oh…" Rai had said after I told him the situation, "I guess it's a good thing I didn't throw the pebbl—I mean explosives yet."

"Yeah," I said in agreement. "Well let's head back to the base, we still have to get ready for the client's arrival." So we all headed back to hand Gray the explosives.

"Finally," Gray said, "that took you forever." She then carried the explosive off into the forest.

"Hey it was pretty hard finding Rai," Esa said.

"What are you doing anyways?" I questioned.

"Disposing the explosives correctly," Gray answered.

_**BOOM…BOOM**_

The explosives detonated on the far side of the forest. After our ears stopped ringing and our eyes adjusted to the flash, I yelled out to Gray, "Are you sure this is the correct way to dispose them!"

"Yeah," Gray yelled back, "It's one of the correct ways anyways. I could make it a dud in the lab by carefully taking it apart but that'll take too long so I'm safely disposing them outside. It's much faster."

"Aren't you destroying the forest though?" Rai questioned. Gray shrugged in reply.

"Wouldn't the people hear/see this explosion?" Esa questioned.

"Most likely not," Gray answered to Esa's question.

"Bad question but can I throw the last explosive?" I asked.

Gray just looked at me. I was sure that by then she would reject such an idea but I was surprised to hear her say "why not." So I threw the explosive. Not as far as I hoped it would, but far enough.

_**BOOM**_

"AH!"

"OH MY GOD JASMINE YOUR HAIR IS PARTLY ON FIRE!"

"HELP ME!"

I swore. We ran over to the voices of Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina. When we arrived on the scene, the fire on Jasmine's hair was out and instead there was dirt, rocks, smoke, and some other elements of nature on her head. Of course this all equaled to a very pissed off Jamine. After a long argument and yelling, we all went in. Inside, Jasmine took a shower (which further damaged her hair and further pissed her off) and the rest of us prepared for the client.

So yeah, story of my life.

* * *

><p><strong>^^ Review for mwah~<strong>


	14. First Day of School

_**Disclaimer:**_** Yeah KHR, as you can see, is just not mine.**

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

**BLAAAAARRREEEE**

_Ah, the trusty old air horn, ringing bright and early into a wonderful morning…just to ruin it. Woohoo._ I got out of bed groggily and headed towards the bathroom.

"Just get into your normal clothes for now girls!" I heard Ace shouting from the hallway.

"I don't get how that guy could be so cheery so early in the morning," I muttered to myself. Washing up and getting into some casual clothing, I went into the hallway and waited for everyone else to come out. One by one, my friends came out of their rooms and joined me in the hallway. When we all gathered, we headed down to meet Rai, Darke, and Ryo.

"Isn't today a school day?" Esa asked with a yawn.

"Yeah it is," I answered.

"Then why are we training?"

"I don't know—"

"Well the answer to that is that we need to keep our body fit," Ace said coming into the living room, "we'll be doing a thirty minute running session, and the other thirty minutes will be used for other training methods! Now let's go run."

"Woah wait," I said, "what about school?"

"You'll have enough time to train, dress, and go to school. Now, everyone out!"

And that's how our morning started off.

_Gotta get to school early for the first day of class._ Currently the eight of us were riding down the mountain to get to the town of Ichimu and school. Since we were going downhill, biking wasn't too bad. From Gray's calculation, a normal bike ride would take about 20-30 minutes to get to town. Speeding up would probably get us there from 15-20 minutes.

"It's 7:03 AM," I said, observing my cell phone, "We should get there on time or maybe a bit earlier since classes start at 7:45AM."

"Good, I need time to get to my locker and find my way around school," Esa said.

"You'll probably have a bit of time to do your stuff before class starts, but not that much," I commented. "If we want to get there faster, we'll have to speed up."

"Ugh, why couldn't Gris or Gray drive us?" Crystal mumbled.

I sighed, thinking the same thing. In the morning, Gris and Gray were in the lab as we were getting ready for school. We were waiting for them, but they insisted we go on first and they'll catch up later.

"_But you are going to school right?" I said._

"_What are you, my mom?" Gray retorted._

"_No, but just go to school ok?"_

_Gray snorted. "Fine, but you guys are going on ahead; we'll get out a bit later. Gris and I are working on something important."_

"_But who's gonna drive us there?" Rai questioned._

"_I'm not your bus driver," Gray said with a stare, "take a bike and get to school, Gris and I will take the motorcycles so we can catch up later."_

"Well let's just hurry up and get there," Selina commented for the first time, "I don't want to be late for the first day of school."Agreeing with Selina, we all speed up on our bikes and hurried toward school.

When the eight of us finally got into town, we hurriedly headed for school. Then, at the intersection that led to different schools, we all said our farewells and planned to meet at the exact spot after school. Rai and Darke rode towards their high school, Crystal, Esa, Jasmine, Selina, and I rode towards our middle school, and Ryo went off alone to his elementary school. As well all (excluding Ryo) rode towards our respective schools, I noticed that Ichimu middle school and high school were right next to each other. It seemed that only Ichimu elementary school was separated from the other two schools. Soon we got near the front entrances of our school. Before we were completely dispatched though, I made sure to let everyone know that during lunch, we should meet at the picnic area in the front of the two schools where the maple trees and sakura trees were. Everyone agreed and went into their school.

* * *

><p>"Locker 260…locker 260…" I went down the hall looking for my locker. When I found it, I dialed my combination and put my books in an orderly fashion. After I had put my books and other materials in periodclass order, I closed my locker and headed for the others' lockers. _Hm, I still have 15 minutes till class officially starts. I think I can go see everyone's lockers and still look around the school in time._ I walked down the hall once more to find Selina at her locker, locker 215. "So this is where your locker is," I said.

"Yeah, you and I have lockers on the second floor, but the others have it on the third floor," Selina said.

"You wanna go to them and see where their lockers are?"

"Sure, but we can't be late to class."

So the two of us went to the third floor of the school to find Esa, Jasmine, and Crystal's lockers. As we found out, the three of them had pretty close lockers. Esa's was locker 356, Jasmine's was 352, and Crystal's was 361. They were finished loading their lockers and were currently comparing schedules.

"Hey, so what's your schedule guys?" I asked as Selina and I approached. We all had our schedule in hand. Holding out our schedules to each other, we found out that Zero really _did_ put us in as many classes together as possible. The schedule Selina and I had were nearly identical.

_My Schedule_

_Period 1-__ Science_

_Period 2-__ Science Lab_

_Period 3-__ Physical Education_

_Period 4-__ Math_

_Period 5-__ Lunch_

_Period 6-__ Japanese_

_Period 7-__ Social Studies_

_Period 8-__ English III_

_Period 9-__Band _

_Selina's Schedule_

_Period 1-__ Science_

_Period 2-__ Science Lab_

_Period 3-__ Physical Education_

_Period 4-__ Japanese_

_Period 5-__ Lunch_

_Period 6-__ Math_

_Period 7-__ Social Studies_

_Period 8-__ English III_

_Period 9-__ Orchestra_

"We have all the same classes together except for fourth, sixth, and ninth period," Selina noted.

"Yep." I turned to the others. "What about you guys?"

"Well let's see…" Jasmine said.

_Period 1-__ Math_

_Period 2-__ Social Studies_

_Period 3-__ Physical Education_

_Period 4-__ Art_

_Period 5-__ Lunch_

_Period 6-__ Science_

_Period 7-__ Science Lab_

_Period 8-__ English III_

_Period 9-__Japanese_

In the end we found out that the three of them shared the _exact_ same schedule, and that they had Physical Education, Lunch, and English with us.

"Nice, we all get to meet up at least three times a day," Crystal said.

"But why are we all in the same English class?" Esa questioned, "Shouldn't we be in different ones?"

"Well I'm guessing that's because we already know English," I commented. "We get to be put into a higher English class, and got to be in the same class."

"So what does the _III_ in English stand for? I mean I know it means like level three, but what grade would that be?" Jasmine asked.

I thought for a moment. "Tenth grade English…at least by Japanese standards."

A bell rang to indicate that school had officially started and that we only had five more minutes till first period started. "Darn it, I was going to look around the school first to have a good map of the school in my head. Oh well, I guess I'll just use the regular map. Thankfully I have a good sense of direction and good map reading skills." I glanced at the others. "Making a good mental map and the fastest routes to each class is a good skill, so you guys should try doing that today."

"Uh yeah…" Crystal said.

"Geez this map is so complicated!" Esa said in annoyance.

"Not really," I answered. I took a look at my phone. "You guys only have three minutes left till your first period class starts. Don't be late!" I waved at them and headed towards my first period class with Selina.

**-First Period-**

"Good morning class, today we seem to have two transfer students to this class. Please introduce yourselves you two." The teacher, Yui sensei, stood in front of the class with her hands on our shoulders.

_Why do I have to introduce myself in front of the whole class? Can't I just do that on my own?_

"Hi my name is Anrya."

"My name is Selina," said Selina.

"Anrya, Selina, it's nice to have you in our class. Please take your seats now; Anrya next to Akane, and Selina, sit in the desk between Hibiki and Hikari.

On the teacher's orders, we each found our seats and sat down. The girl Akane, who sat next to the left of me, seemed to be a quiet girl. She stared out the window and only gave a nod when I said 'hi' to her in courtesy. Akane was also quite pretty. Not the beautiful, pretty, but a pretty in a natural sense. She had long, pin-straight, deep-red hair, with long bang that covered most of her eyes. Her hair stopped just below her waist, and she was slim in figure. On the top corner of her notebook paper, Akane seemed to be doodling. Sitting on the opposite side of the room was Selina. Selina seemed to be seated between two lively people: Hibiki and Hikari. Hibiki was an average sized boy who had sandy-blonde hair. His eyes were a light brown color, and he had a sort of sharp feature. Hikari, the girl who sat on the other side of Selina, had light brown hair that was cut at shoulder length. She had a cute, heart-shaped face, and light brown eyes. As I looked toward them, I saw that they were enthusiastically talking to Selina, who was trying to listen to them both at the same time. Smiling, I turned away and took out the materials needed for my science class.

* * *

><p><strong>Selina's P.O.V.<strong>

"Hey Selina-chan, I'm Hibiki—"

"—and I'm Hikari!" the two said to Selina.

"Hi Hibiki-kun, Hikari-chan," I politely answered with a smile.

"Selina-chan, did you know that Hibiki and I are related?" Hikari said right off the bat.

"Really? Are you guys cousins? Or maybe you guys are twins?" I said, though they looked nothing alike.

"Nah, we half-sibling twins," Hibiki said with a serious look. "Our mother had an affair with two men and had us at the same time so that's why we look kind of different." Hikari nodded seriously in agreement.

"O-oh…" Their enthusiastic talking had me already caught off guard, but now I really wasn't sure how to react to their bold front about their birth. "Uh…"

Hibiki and Hikari broke out into a grin. "We're just kidding," Hikari said with a laugh.

"We're just fraternal twins Selina-chan. There aren't such things as half-sibling twins. No need to feel awkward~" Hibiki said, smiling.

I gave an awkward laugh, but felt somewhat relieved.

"If you need any help to get to your classes, find your way around school, or anything else, just talk to us and we'll help you out," Hikari said.

"Thanks" I replied, and started to take out the materials needed for the class.

"So what class do you have next?" Hibiki asked.

I opened my mouth to answer, but was cut off by the teacher's "settle down, class is starting" speech. So instead I just showed them my schedule, and they compared it to theirs.

* * *

><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

On the first floor of the school, Jasmine, Crystal and I attended our first period class: Math.

"Class, we have some transfer students that are now attending this school. Please greet Esa, Jasmine, and Crystal to the class." The class greeted us to the teacher's request, and we were seated according to the teacher's instructions. I was seated in the middle row of the classroom and Jasmine and Crystal were seated on the right-hand side of the classroom. Crystal sat to the right of Jasmine, against the wall, and Jasmine sat to the left of Crystal. Sitting to the left of Jasmine was a fairly tall guy with ice-blue hair and ice-blue eyes. According to what I heard from the people around me, the guy's name was Hiroto. He was part of the Ichimu Student Council, the president of the Disciplinary Committee, and was in various sports and clubs. Hiroto was said to be a fair guy, who was serious most of the time, but was still a decent guy. The guys around me told me that Hiroto was scary, but the girls seem to think he was just distant. The fact that he was assigned to be our assistant/guide around the school didn't seem to faze him. I, on the other hand, was placed next to two guys. One who looked like a trouble maker, and one who looked more like the quiet type. The guy who looked like he'd be a troublemaker was Kaede, and the quieter one was Noboru. Kaede was a cheerful guy with reddish-orange hair. His eyes were the same color as his hair, and he had headphones and earphones around his neck. Naboru, on the other hand, had pitched black hair. With dark eyes to match his hair, Naboru was like a dark shadow in the room. The black hoodie didn't help to make him more noticeable. The girls around me seemed to think that Naboru didn't like to talk and was a loner, but to my observation, it wasn't that Naboru was non-social; he was just shy.

"I guess we're the ones helping you out," Kaede said, cheerfully. "If you're not sure about something ask us or drag us around and we'll help you." Kaede put an arm around Naboru's shoulder and said, "Right pal?"

"Um…"

"We're best of friends so we'll both help you, 'kay Esa-chan?" Kaede said.

I wasn't sure what to do about the situation, and I also wasn't sure which of the two were more reliable: the one that looked like a troublemaker or the shy, quiet one. _Maybe I'll just tag along with Jasmine and Crystal's guide…_ But just to be polite I said, "Sure" to the two guys. Somewhere behind me a person snorted.

"I don't think those two weirdoes are reliable, so good luck newbie," an arrogant girl's voice said. "By the way girl, the way those two became friends went along the lines of: Kaede stalking and following Naboru home everyday. Though Naboru didn't seem to want to talk to Kaede, he had no choice, and they somehow connected and became friends." The girl flipped her hair and crossed her arms.

"Oh please bitch," Kaede said downright boldly, "just because you think you're hot stuff doesn't mean you get to whine about our awesomeness."

"Ha, there's nothing really awesome about you guys. I'm Yuri, class president of this grade, and you're what?" The girl Yuri turned to Naboru and stared him down.

Naboru diverted his eyes from Yuri and started to pull his hood up.

"Don't worry Naboru, Yuri's just jealous of our swag so just ignore her~" Kaede broke out into a grin.

Just then the teacher called the class to attention to start their work. "Naboru-kun, please put your hood down in this class."

"Hai sensei," Naboru mumbled.

Feeling bad for the two, I decided that I'd let them help me around for a bit. I also hoped to never come in contact with Yuri. She was, as Kaede said, a bitch.

* * *

><p><strong>Rai's P.O.V.<strong>

Class was pretty boring so far. We were learning some "informational" stuff, and the teacher's voice was so monotone that it put half of us to sleep. Looking over at Darke, I wondered how he was able to stay awake and take notes in this class. _So bored…_

* * *

><p><strong>Jasmine's P.O.V.<strong>

"And this is your next class on your schedule as I recall," said Hiroto.

Crystal, Esa, and I were guided by Hiroto to our gym class. Hiroto wasn't too bad of a guy though he was a bit serious sometimes.

"Remember to keep all electronics, jewelry, and personal items in your gym locker. The school is not responsible for any damage or disappearance of your materials," Hiroto recited.

"Thanks," I said.

"Yeah, yeah, we know~" said one of the two guys who were supposedly Esa's guide. His name was Kaede.

Hiroto turned his icy-blue eyes to Kaede. "I know you know Kaede, but since you aren't doing your part in guiding the transfer students, I am. If you don't wish to listen to me then don't follow along."

Kaede turned his head to the side and muttered, "Che."

"By the way, take off your hood and put away your headphones in gym guys," Hiroto said coolly. Turning away from us, Hiroto headed for his own class.

"Hey guys!" I heard from the other side of the gym. Anrya and Selina were waving at us and behind Anrya, stood a red haired girl with bangs covering her eyes. We ran up to Anrya and greeted her. Kaede introduced himself along with Naboru, and the girl Akane was introduced by Anrya. Parting from the guys, we walked towards the girls' locker room and talked about our day so far, who our teachers were, how the classes were like, who our guides were, and etc. After we got into the girls' locker room and changed, we left to go out to the field as the physical education teacher instructed.

Outside, we were confronted by a gigantic field containing a track field, soccer field, a baseball field, a football field, and lots and lots of grass.

"Wow," Anrya commented, "that's one large field."

"It is," Esa agreed.

"Esaaaaa-chaaaaan~~~!" someone shouted from far off. That someone was a waving Rai. Behind him stood Darke.

"What the—" Esa turned to us. "Why is Rai on the same grassy field as us? I thought he went to Ichimu high school."

"The middle school and high school share the same field," the girl Akane said quietly, in a matter o' fact way. "The middle school and the high school used to be one school from grades 7-12. Since the school population was so big, they made a large field for the school that covered a lot of ground. But later the school system changed and they split the school into two buildings. Since the constructions fees to knock down a whole school and build two new ones were too expensive, the school just attached the high school next to the middle school and the two schools just shared the same field." Pointing back at the school, Akane once more quietly said, "See? The two schools are connected by a large hall extending from one school to another."

That was true. The middle school and the high school _were_ really close together and a hall in the first and second floor connected the two buildings like a bridge or a tunnel.

"Yo!" Kaede came running up to us with Naboru shuffling close at his heels. "What are you guys talking about?"

Kaede seem to be rather friendly with us as if we were old pals when really we just met. _I guess he's not that bad_ I thought. He seemed to have a good personality that made everyone comfortable.

"We were just talking about how the middle school and high school were connected," Esa said.

"Huh, you didn't know?" Kaede asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I didn't know," Esa said, "But Akane explained it to us."

"Well, some of the middle school classes can be in the high school hall, and some of the high school classes are in the middle school hall. If you look around you might see some high schoolers around," Kaede said with a shrug.

"Esaaaaa-chaaaaaaan~~~!" Rai continued to shout while waving.

Kaede turned to the direction Rai was in and squinted. "Huh? Who's that—hey, that's the guy I met in the high school hallway!"

"What," Esa said blankly.

"Yeah, his name was…Rai! He got lost in the technology hallway (which was where my class was) and I helped him find his class." Kaede turned to us. "Is he your friend?"

"I guess you can say that," Anrya said.

From a distance the physical education teacher blew the whistle and motioned us to gather around him.

* * *

><p><strong>Crystal's P.O.V.<strong>

When lunch finally came, I felt relieved to be out of class. Meeting up with Anrya and Selina, we headed outside to eat. During the lunch period all students were free to eat anywhere within the premises of the school, so the picnic area near the front of the two schools was a great place to eat at.

"Esa-chan~~~!" shouted Rai from the picnic spot. Darke was also there, and the area was thankfully secluded.

"What baka-Rai," Esa said.

"Hiiiii."

"Yeah, hi."

Soon we reached the picnic area and sat down with our lunches. Immediately we shared our day at school with each other, and exchanged comments and laughs. The only one who didn't join in was Darke. Currently, Anrya was sharing her morning with us when out of the corner of my eye I saw a blonde haired girl. Squinting, I saw that the girl looked like Ada. I frowned. _That can't be right._ But I soon found out that I was right because when we made eye contact, she immediately came towards me. She must've seen Darke close by me too since she frowned. "Bitch alert," I said interrupting Anrya's story.

"What?" Anrya said.

"Don't look, but behind you a bit to the right, the girl Ada is coming towards us."

"You mean that girl you told us about that night you came back from the town?" Jasmine asked.

"Yeah."

"How do we make her go away?" Esa questioned. "I don't really want any drama or trouble with someone like her."

"Shhh! Here she comes," I whispered.

"Hello Darke," said Ada, greeting Darke first with a voice so disgustingly sweet that it made me gag.

Darke didn't answer, but just nodded.

Ada then glanced over at Rai and smiled at him.

"Oh hello, and who might you be?" Anrya said putting on a polite smile.

Ada turned and looked at Anrya. "My name is Ada Giovenello. Who are you?"

"Anrya," Anrya said.

Ada nodded in reply then looked directly at me and smirked. "Oh hi…what was your name…oh right! Crystal. Nice to see _you_ again. I see you're having a nice lunch under the cherry blossom trees with Darke…and friends. What a great place!"

The false cheerfulness of her voice annoyed me so much that it set my teeth on edge. Then without a word, Ada brush past me and went towards Darke with a swing of her hips. I let out a breath of air.

"Hello Darke," Ada said for the second time. She spun halfway to lean against a tree with Darke. Her short skirt spun out, revealing a bit of her underwear. I was pretty sure that pulling up your skirt to make it shorter was a dress code violation at the high school. "Darke, would you like to eat out with me at lunch times?"

Unable to stand her any longer, I cut her off and said, "Ada, do you mind leaving?"

Ada stopped mid-sentence and glanced at my direction. She raised an eyebrow at me and smiled. She probably thought that I was going all jealous over Darke, but whatever. I just wanted her to leave.

"If I'm not mistaken, I'm older than you Crystal right?" Ada flashed a false smile at me. "Then I'm guessing that it's also true that you should add the suffix –sempai or –san after my name, no?"

I rolled my eyes unable to hold in the annoyance Ada was unreasonably causing me. _Look at all the fucks I give._ _Who's that formal these days anyways? _Ada and I stared each other down. Just when it was getting really uncomfortable, an angel saved us.

"Why is it so noisy here?" Gray irritatedly said. In her hand she held a bottle of coke, and in her other hand she held her lunch. Scanning us critically with her eyes, she stopped at Ada and said, "Looks like we have one more person adding to the already large crowd of brats who will make my lunch unpleasant."

Ok, let me take back the 'angel' part of my statement.

Ada indignantly rose from the tree she was leaning on. "Excuse me?" she sputtered.

"You're excused," Gray answered. "Now be quiet or go away." Gray placed her food down on the picnic table and let out a breath. I don't know if it was just me, but Gray seemed more annoyed today than usual…Maybe it was because she was tired?

"Why should I? And did you just call me a brat?" Ada bitched.

"Yes Miss Barbie Bitch, need a clarification on that?"

Ada sputtered angrily. "How rude and indecent!"

"Thank you," Gray said mockingly, taking a bow. "Applause for the great Gray here please."

I smiled at Gray's wise crack.

"Huh, _Gray_? Is that even a girl name? How drab," Ada smirked arrogantly.

Gray turned her eyes to Ada. "If I'm not wrong, it was you with your high-pitched falsetto who told little miss sunshine here," Gray indicated me with her head, "that one should respectfully add the suffix –sempai or –san after the name of an elder, did you not?" Ada turned red in the face. "Then maybe you should do as you teach and call me Gray-sempai or Gray-san huh?"

Ada turned away from Gray with a flip of her hair. "Whatever, I'm leaving your group of losers here." Then looking at Darke she said, "If you want to come and have lunch with me, call me 'kay?"

"Don't bother waiting," Gray leisurely said.

Ada fumed. "Well no wonder no guy likes _you_ Gray," Ada snorted.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure some guys _do_ dig me," Gray shot back. "But I guess the reason _you_ don't have a boyfriend is cause Barbie dolls come a dime a dozen." Giving Ada a last look of false sympathy, she said, "Poor you~" And that was the last we saw of Ada during lunch.

"This is probably gonna cause some big girl-hate-drama, but that was awesome Gray!" Anrya said with a grin.

"Hmph," Gray snorted. "I needed to let out some steam anyways. A blonde bitch was the perfect punching bag."

"Huh, why? Did something happen during the day?" Esa questioned.

Gray looked at Esa and replied, "A fellow classmate disagreed with my method of working with technology and was being an ass about it all last period." Then plopping herself down on a table she said, "Now really, try being quiet while I eat."

We were silent for a while when Gris came and said, "Gray-nee do you have my motorbike keys?"

"Yeah," Gray said, "Here." She tossed the keys to her twin brother Gris and then continued to eat.

Behind our picnic area, the sound of shoes tapping the ground could be heard coming closer. "Hmhmhm~ School life seems to be lively around here," said a voice we knew to be Zero's. He, Ren, and Ace came out from behind a maple tree.

"Hmph, maybe that's only for you," Gray retorted. "All throughout the day, I hear girls from our senior grade, and the grade below, fawning over you, Ren, and Ace in such an annoying manner."

"Jealous?"

"Frankly, no. The way the girls cooed over you was somewhat disgusting." Gray then imitated some girls she heard. _"Omg, did you see Zero-san? His hair is so beautiful and his silver eyes are so enthralling. Don't you just want to pet his hair? Omg, yes! He's so gorgeous and a good flirt. Oh, and did you hear about Ren? Yeah, he looks so intelligent. I heard he was such a gentleman. Yeah, there are few guys with good looks and chivalry as him. Oh yeah, and aren't those two friends with that hottie Ace too? I heard they were all transfer students. Ace's muscle look so hot on him and his smile is so dazzling. Oooh, I just want him to hold me in his arms~!"_ Gray stopped her act and continued to eat.

Around me, Anrya, Esa, Jasmine, Selina, and I all sort of gagged.

Zero just smiled and shifted his hair a bit, showing his one red glittering eye.

Anrya stopped eating for a moment and stared at Zero. "How did the people in your class react to your one red eye Zero?" Anrya asked. "Did you perhaps use an illusion to conceal it?"

"Hmhmhm~ You're quite observant, and no, I did not use an illusion," Zero said. "Using an illusion would be a waste of energy so I simply covered my red eye with a bit of my hair."

"Couldn't you just wear colored contacts?" I questioned.

"I could, but they're irritable."

With nothing more to ask, we all ate peacefully for the rest of the lunch period.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

During eighth period, all seven of us were in _English III_, a class in the high school hallway. Again, we all had to introduce ourselves due to being transfer students, except this time, Ada was up there with us as a transfer student too. Glaring at us, Ada introduced herself flirtatiously and sat in her seat. The rest of us introduced ourselves and the class proceeded.

"Whew, what a long day," I commented as we rode to the intersection where our meeting place was. The others seem to agree with me.

"I wonder how it was like for Ryo at school," Jamine commented.

I just shrugged and continued to petal.

"Hey, you know who Ada reminds me of from school?" Esa asked out of the blue.

Crystal groaned at the sound of Ada's name.

"Who?" I questioned.

"Our bitchy class president of our grade, Yuri," Esa replied.

"Looks like our school life is going to be pretty lively…" I said.

* * *

><p><strong>Hi there *hover*<strong>


	15. Sadistic Old Man

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR + Me = Not mine**

* * *

><p><strong>Selina's P.O.V.<strong>

"Tell me again, why are we doing this?"

"The old geezer," Anrya simply replied with a look of distaste on her face. We were all outside in the front of the house standing stock still. Thirty minutes has gone since we first stood.

* * *

><p><em>-About five weeks earlier-<em>

"Ah, another great day from school," Crystal said dryly as we all rode and sometimes walked our bikes up the mountain.

"Hey at least we didn't have another encounter with Ada that was as bad as yesterday's," Anrya said.

Today was the second day we had gone to school in Ichimu. We all went up the mountain towards our base, a bit tiredly due to the uphill. All of us were eager to get home and rest, but little did we know we'd be confronted with a surprise.

"We're back," Anrya announced as we got inside. Walking inside, she suddenly stopped short and briefly greeted an old man who sat in the living room with Zero, Ren, Ace, Gris and Gray.

"Who's that?" Esa questioned. I briefly wondered if the old man was someone's grandpa, but that thought was ruled out with what Zero said next.

"Hmhmhm~ I see you're back from school. Well, we have a special guest from the mafia here, Isamu Hiroshi-sama, so I hope you provide good hospitality while he stays here," Zero said.

Anrya looked like she was about to say something, but decided not to say it. Instead, Anrya went up to the old man Isamu Hiroshi, greeted him once again, and introduced us to him. "Hello Hiroshi-sama, it's nice to have you here. My name is Anrya and behind me are my guardians." Turning towards us, Anrya said, "Why don't you guys introduce yourselves?"

So one by one we introduced ourselves. When it was my turn I said, "My name is Selina." At the end of our introduction, we all dispersed to our rooms. As I headed upstairs, I noticed that Anrya had stayed behind to talk quietly to Zero. From the looks of it, she looked annoyed. Curious, but not interested enough to stay behind, I walked upstairs to my room.

After our first encounter with Isamu Hiroshi-sama, our week continued smoothly. Besides the fact that the old man stayed in our home and was constantly around us, everything was normal…to the Pericoloso Family standards at least. Every morning we'd wake up around 5 a.m. and do our hour of exercise with Ace. Then we'd go to school like we'd usually do and hang out a bit. School was ok so far. We've had some minor encounters with Ada, but other than that, we didn't meet her _too_ much since she went to Ichimu High School. As of those who did go to our middle school, all our "school guides" seem to stick to us a lot. Hibiki and Hikari were chatty as usual, Akane was quiet, Hiroto continued to regulate the school rules and even pushed us to join a sport or club, Kaede and Naboru—well, they were Kaede and Naboru. After school ended, we headed home like we usually did. Again I would see the old man Hiroshi-sama hanging around, and I would wonder why he was always looking at us. One day I found out why.

We were all coming back from our second week of school. It was a Friday, and we were all happy for our weekend coming up.

"Kya~! Finally, it's the weekend," Crystal said in delight, "We should all go to the mall on Saturday!"

"That seems like a good idea," Esa said.

"If we do go, then I guess we can invite some of our friends from school to come with us," I said. "I know Hikari-chan would love to go clothes shopping, and Hibiki would go for the bookstore."

"Erm, I don't think Akane would be the type to go shopping…" Anrya said with an uncomfortable look.

"Yeah, I don't know if Hiroto-kun would be the type to go shopping either," Crystal replied. Jasmine nodded in agreement.

"I guess you're right on that part," I agreed. Akane and Hiroto-kun didn't seem quite that type. I would feel bad if Akane just followed after us quietly while we all enjoyed our time. As for Hiroto-kun…well I didn't know him that well.

"That would mean that Kaede and Naboru are coming too," Esa said.

"Do you think they would come?" Jamine asked.

"Definitely," Esa answered. "I mean, Naboru may not want to, but Kaede would. Either way Naboru will come…against his will maybe, but he'll come." Esa shrugged with a detached look of pity.

I gave Esa a questioning look.

"Kaede would definitely drag Naboru (like it or not) with him to the mall with us. My guess is that he'll go straight to the gaming section, the music section, or the manga section of the bookstore," Esa said. Then making a face, Esa said, "If Naboru isn't entertaining enough for Kaede I have a feeling he'll drag _me_ with him too."

"Looks like someone is popular with the guys," teased Crystal. "Not only do you have Rai, but Kaede and Naboru too~"

Esa jabbed Crystal on the side. "Oh shut up. They're just friends-ish."

"Oh? What's the 'ish' part?" Jasmine also teased.

"Oh for goodness sake, it's only been two weeks of school and you guys are already saying this?" Esa huffed, but we could all tell she knew we were just teasing her.

Joking around, making half-planned plans, and walking, we soon got to the front door of our home. "We're back," Anrya announced into the house like she usually did.

"Hello children," said Hiroshi-sama said as he sipped tea. Anrya greeted him politely and excused herself. We did the same.

"Ah, you guys are back," Ace said. His green hair was wet and a towel was around his shoulders. "It sure took you guys long."

"What are you talking about?" Anrya said. "We always come back at this time. Gray and Gris arrive about fifteen minutes before us, but that's because they have a motorbike."

Ace thought for a moment. "Oh, I guess that's right. Must've just been…" Ace's voice trailed off, then with a smile he said, "Ok, got it. Never mind~" We all gave him a questioning look. "Well I have to say that I have good news."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Today I decided that we were going to start our combat unit."

We all stared at him. _That was the good news?_ I wasn't so sure how I felt about this unit since I wasn't much of a fighter.

"Che, complete nonsense," said Hiroshi-sama quite suddenly. Surprised, we all turned to look at him. "The mafia of this generation—" Hiroshi-sama shook his head. "—quite pathetic. Since the day I got here, I have seen no such mafia-like activity or any serious training involved. All I've seen were children leading out ordinary lives as if they were playing House. The young ones in this generation really seem to have lost their touch." Hiroshi-sama shook his head in disgust.

An awkward silence floated through the room.

Ace then broke the silence. "Well from what I heard from Zero-san and Ren-san, you seem to have high standards Hiroshi-sama," Ace said. "I remember Ren-san mentioning that you as their teacher taught them strictly. But please let me say that you must put into consideration that this family is new and they've just formed."

"Bah! All the more for these kids to learn properly from the basics," Hiroshi-sama growled. "And speaking of Zero and Ren, what have those brats been doing all this time! As my former students they should know better than anyone what skills are needed to form a fine mafia family!"

_Eh, students? Fine mafia family? What's gotten into this guy?_ It hit me then how different Hiroshi-sama seemed. In the previous weeks, Hiroshi-sama seemed like a quiet, watchful old man who didn't seem too associated with the mafia. It worried me then that Hiroshi-sama would feel uncomfortable around a family such as us, but seeing how he was now, I guess I didn't have to worry. Hiroshi-sama was more than met the eye. I suppose in the weeks he had been here, he hadn't just been dawdling around the house. Hiroshi-sama analyzed us quite well, and seemed to have taken note of our behavior patterns. Though I wasn't sure, I believe that Hiroshi-sama must've felt pretty annoyed and disappointed in our family conduct. _I guess he really does have high expectations for a mafia family _I thought to myself.

"Wait…students? Zero and Ren were your students and—" Anrya shook her head in disbelief. We were all surprised.

More to himself than to the others, Ace said, "I heard a couple of stories about you from Zero-san and Ren-san…from how they fight, I guess you were a skilled master."

Though Ace said so, I doubted a bit that Hiroshi-sama was a great master or such. Maybe back then when he was a bit younger…but now he was old...

Rai, who had lost interest in the conversation a while ago, piped in on the conversation with a statement. "Oji-san, we know training is important, that's why we do it everyday. Anyways, since we have flames now, we can still be awesome even if we lack a bit of training~"

I glanced at Rai. _We're not that good Rai-kun…_

"Rai!" Anrya chastised with a whisper.

"Why you incompetent little boy! I am not your old man and nor will I ever be, so refer to me properly and accordingly with respect!" snapped Hiroshi-sama.

"Hiroshi-sama, I'm pretty sure Rai-kun didn't mean to offend you," Anrya said politely. "He just wanted to add the fact that the use of flames is an advantage to a person." Then before Hiroshi-sama could outburst anymore, Anrya quickly added, "Of course as you've said, training and self-defense is important too."

"Hmph, of course I'm correct. I _know_ the importance of new discoveries in tactics, powers, and strategies, but I also know the skill needed from the past to make a fine person! If I ignored the fact of either one, I'd be a doting fool!" Then he turned to Rai. "And boy, what you do in the mornings isn't much of a training! Having speed, stamina, power, and such should be a given! What you do to refine it afterwards is what you call training!" Then with a final huff, Hiroshi-sama calmed down. "So Ace, if it doesn't alter the situation too much, I will be borrowing these little kids and shaping them up a bit for _real_ training. Three weeks is all I need. It won't be nearly enough to make them as skilled as I would like them to be, but I'm going to show these young ones a bit of what a real mafia member can do. After that, it's all up to them and you brats to strengthen and sharpen their skills."

Ace nodded respectfully to Hiroshi-sama's request. "A bit of extra training won't hurt, I suppose."

"Good. Then training starts tomorrow!" Hiroshi-sama announced. He then turned around and headed for his room, but before that he said one last thing. "Oh, and for those of you who doubt my skill (I can clearly see the doubt on your faces), do keep in mind that before you judge a book, you should read its contents first." Then with a swift motion of the arm, Hiroshi-sama walked away.

Crystal made a little yelp. We turned to see what the matter was, and saw that the hat she wore on her head was no longer on her head. Instead, it hung on the wall behind us, knife pinning it to the wall. My jaw dropped and the others blanched. Ace only chuckled.

"That's Zero-san and Ren-san's master alright," Ace said. "For a while I wasn't so sure, but from the looks of it, it's him." Ace chuckled once more. "If he wanted to, he could've killed you right then and there~"

"Ace, I don't think that's something to be happy about," I said. "Crystal could've gotten hurt or something."

Ace shrugged.

"Argh! That old man punctured my hat!" Crystal said with a huff. "Now it has a hole in it." Crystal fingered the hole in her hat with annoyance.

"Well at least you're not dead," Esa pointed out.

And that was how our Friday went.

The next day we woke up, and did the usual thing with Ace, and since it was the weekend, we got to meet Hiroshi-sama real early.

"Now all you little brats listen up, I'm going to teach some basics needed in combat," Hiroshi-sama said gruffly. "We're not going to get into real combat due to time constraints (and that's not my job, it's the others'. Plus I wouldn't want to be teaching such incompetent brats such as you kids.), but I will be training you in the skills of combat. First of all, note that combat is not just a physical battle, but a mental and an emotional battle as well."

Rai raised his hand.

"What!" Hiroshi-sama snapped.

"Um, how is combat an emotional battle too? I mean I understand the physical part and a bit on the mental part (since sports are like that too), but no one really loses a fight just because they get mad or something. I've seen plenty of fist fights and stuff at school, but I didn't see how emotion had anything to do with it (unless that was the reason the fight was started)."

"Fool! Don't go mixing your childish skirmishes at school to real combat!" Hiroshi-sama said. "What they do there isn't even worth being called a fight; they're just brats getting angry over trivial matters! Their fights have no skill or thought process whatsoever! _Fighting_ and _combat_ is _not_ the same thing. Also, to answer your question on emotional battle, I will say that it _is_ relevant to combat. If you let your emotions get in the way of combat, you are most likely bound to lose, but at the same time, if you can control your emotions, you may be able to use it to your advantage. An example of this is when an enemy gets you to do what they want by angering you or pressuring you. If you do not keep your emotions in check, you'll do exactly what they want you to do. But at the same time, if you can turn your emotion into power or do the vise versa of what they did to you, it'll be to your advantage." Then Hiroshi-sama continued to lecture some more and continued to do so, until Anrya insinuated that they were getting a bit off topic, and that Hiroshi-sama should get back on topic. "Anyways, from observing you brats, I found that most of you lacked some physical abilities. Everyone should try to have a decent amount of power, speed, stamina, evasion, skill, flexibility, accuracy and so on, but some of you do well in one, but not the other. Out of all of them though, I must say that you brats have terrible stamina! How can you last in a battle if you have no stamina? Great if you have speed, great if you have power, but what good can it do if you can't last long?" And Hioroshi-sama continued to rant like this for a while. It wasn't until around 11a.m that our real training began, and let me tell you, that man was a sadistic maniac (the quiet old people are always the fishy ones). Right off the bat, he told us to sprint twenty times around the Pericoloso property non-stop under ten minutes for a warm-up. Now let me tell you, the Pericoloso property is pretty big, plus, I wasn't sure if I could do that. It became obvious pretty soon that most of us had pretty bad stamina because on the fifth time around, most of us slowed to a walked to catch our breaths. Of course that's when the mangoes started to fly. Hiroshi-sama wouldn't have us slacking off on such a small warm up, so he decided that it would _motivate _us if he threw pieces of squishy mangoes at us. When the mango pieces started to pick up in speed and increased in numbers, we all ran for our lives around the property. Next came the ridiculous exercises. A hundred sit-ups, push-ups, crunches, suicides…it was all a very painful process. Actually by then, I was pretty sure we all wanted to suicide ourselves. Exercise after exercise we were pushed to the limit of our physical ability. This is how our first week went.

When we got to the second week, our training time was more relaxing, thank God. We did some yoga to calm ourselves in mind and body, some relaxation techniques, and a bit of some brutal mental training. Though all this was supposed to be relaxing, I couldn't help but feel on edge with this teacher. It must've been because he continually yelled at us to RELAX while threatening us…

On the third week of our training with Hiroshi-sama, we worked on emotional control. This was what was currently going on. Hiroshi-sama thought it would do us good to control our temper, anxiety, and fear through the training he was currently giving us. The training was called: "_Let-the-brats-stand-stock-still-without-retaliatin g-or-flinching-while-I-throw-pieces-of-sticky-mang __o-on-them._"

* * *

><p>"Tell me again, why are we doing this?"<p>

"The old geezer," Anrya simply replied with a look of distaste on her face. We were all outside in the front of the house standing stock still. Thirty minutes has gone since we first stood. Now we were covered in mango slime and feeling quite sticky. A while ago, Rai was the first one to get harshly pelted for showing his restlessness in movement, and for flinching when the mango pieces hit him. Next, Anrya, Esa, Crystal, and Jasmine were pelted for showing irritation and talking back, and most of us were pelted again for complaint and our expression of irritation. Turning my head a bit to the side, I glanced at Anrya for a moment. Though she had had the sense to stop complaining or expressing her irritation long ago, a look of distaste and annoyance was shown on her face. She did a decent job to cover her irritation, but the hard look in her eyes and the tight clenching of her teeth showed her true feelings. Crystal on the other hand, had a full scowl on her face. Esa and Jasmine were shuffling around a bit due to the unpleasant feeling of stickiness on their skin, and Rai was gloomily lying on his stomach. It seemed that Darke and Ryo were the ones to get the fewest amounts of mango pieces on them. Thankfully, we weren't getting hit by mango pieces too often now.

"Now before this lesson is now dismissed," said Hiroshi-sama, "we'll review our previous lessons and then we will end the day." And that was exactly what happened, so by the time we got inside, we were tired, exhausted, and fatigued, physically, mentally and emotionally.

"Ah, it looks like you guys finished training," Gris said as we walked by, "Come to the kitchen for dinner after you have finished cleaning up." So we did that and were pleasantly surprised to find a very nice dinner set on the table.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

The aroma in the kitchen was great, and along with the food on the table, things were perfect. I wasn't sure whether the food tasted so great because of the cook or whether it was just because I was so hungry from fatigue, but dinner was great. While we ate dinner a couple of realizations came to me.

"Hey Gray," I said, "Why are we having a feast?"

"Hm…?" Gray crossed her arms. "I don't think you really need a reason, but I guess you can say that since today was our last day of training with Hiroshi-sama, the fact that Hiroshi-sama is leaving tomorrow, and that in America it's Thanksgiving today (though in Japan we don't need to celebrate that but it's a good excuse to eat), we can have a feast."

I grinned at this along with the others. Picking up my utensils once more, I began to eat again. "Wait a second, where has Zero and Ren been for the past four weeks and where are they now?"

"Hm?" Gray glanced at me.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen Zero nor Ren around while Hiroshi-sama was here," Selina said.

"No wonder the house seemed a bit more peaceful in some aspects," Esa said.

"Hmph, don't care," Gray said nonchalantly. She then continued to eat. For a while, our family ate dinner normally and had some conversations going on when:

_Tap tap tap_

"Huh?" There came a tapping sound on the window. "What the…" Zero was tapping on the window and waving at us. I got up from my seat and opened the window for him.

"Thanks Anrya-chan~" Zero and Ren slipped into the kitchen through the window.

I sighed. "Couldn't you have come from the door like a normal person would…Anyways, join us in dinner."

"Ah, so you've returned," Hiroshi-sama said. "After running away from me, I wasn't sure whether or not you two brats would ever bother returning. Anyways, I see you've been neglecting your duties. Since you have once been my students, I expected more from those brats over there, but it looks like you haven't taught them anything."

"Hmhmhm~" Zero chuckled. "I don't ever recall running away from you Hiroshi-sama. It is just that I prefer to be absent in your presence." Zero smiled then turned to us. "Congratulations on your survival so far Pericoloso Family~"

_What's that supposed to mean…_

* * *

><p><strong>Review? o3o<strong>


	16. Anrya's Backstory

**A.N.-**** ovo Here's the long awaited chapter~**

_**Disclaimer:**_** You know the routine.**

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

_Done._ I closed my notebook and put away my writing utensils, indicating that I had finished my homework. Stretching, I looked around at the others who were beginning to finish their homework or were already finished with their homework. On normal days, we'd do our homework in our own rooms or at the lounge, and sometimes in the living room, but on days that Ren was to give us a lesson on something, we gathered on the top floor: the library.

"Ah, finished," I said with a smile.

"Me too," Crystal said, putting her pencil down.

"Same," Jasmine said, chewing on a piece of gum.

"Finishing in a moment," Esa said, writing rapidly. Around her, Selina, Ryo, Rai, and Darke were all done. "Ok, finished!" Esa hurriedly put away her homework and belongings.

"Now all we have to do is wait for Ren to arrive," Jasmine said with a sigh. "We have an hour to kill."

"Well, it's better than training with that demon of a Phys. Ed. teacher, Ace," Esa commented while putting away the last of her things.

"I thought Hiroshi-sama was more of demon," Selina said.

"They're both demons," Esa replied, "it's just that one is more sadistic than the other in some ways…"

"Thank goodness he's gone now," Crystal said, and we all nodded in agreement.

"When I think of my life back then, and then I think of my life now," Jasmine said out of the blue, "I think: Wow, I've got one messed up life. Back then, all this wouldn't have been too normal, but now it kind of is…"

"Well, if you think about it, it's not _that_ different from normal," Esa said, "we still go to school, do stuff, do some abnormal stuff, but that's about it. It's been about ten months since we first stepped foot into this place, so it's not abnormal that we got used to things."

"I guess you're right," Jasmine said.

"I think living like this isn't too bad," Rai said with his usual smile, "It's pretty fun and interesting. Plus there's Esa-chan and the others too~" Rai gave Esa a playful poke on the shoulder. In turn, Esa swatted away Rai's hand.

I smiled. _Looks like everyone really did get used to each other._ In the past Esa would always glare at Rai for any flirtatious act or whatnot, but now she seemed ok with it. We all got used to each other's presence…or absence.

"Since we have time to kill, how about you tell us a story Anrya-chan~?" Rai said.

"Eh? What story?"

"Hm…like the story of how this family started? Like when _you_ were first asked to form this family."

"I want to know that too," Selina said.

"Seems pretty interesting," Esa said.

"Yay, story time with Anrya-chan," Crystal said.

I looked at the clock, then at the others, and sighed. "Ok, ok, I tell you guys while we're waiting." I got comfortable and prepared myself to tell the story. "So this is how it started. It was the last day of sixth grade …"

* * *

><p>I woke up to a normal school day. It was the last day of school and all I had to do is go to school, take my finals test and come back home. After that, summer vacation. So I went to school by school bus and went to my assigned testing room.<p>

"The test will be started in just five minutes, so please sit down on your assigned seats."

I sat down on a seat, neatly arranged my pens and pencils, and waited for the test to start. As I waited, my mind drifted off and I soon stared out the window. Blankly staring out into the school field, my eyes drifted around the scenery. At one point in my staring-out-the-window, I saw out of the corner of my eye that two figures were standing far off in the field. I took curiosity to this and focused my vision back on the figure…only they were no longer there. _Huh? Maybe that was just my imagination?_ I doubted that I would imagine such, but before I could elaborate on the thought, the proctor called attention to the students, saying that the test would be starting. _Ah the test is starting!_ A bit curious on what I saw before, but finding more importance in the test, I dismissed the previous thought and took my test.

_-After the test-_

I headed towards the school bus feeling happy to be finished with the finals and school.

"Hey Anrya, how'd you do on the test?"

"I think I did pretty well though I'm not sure about the answer to some questions like question #48."

"Yeah, same. But for #48 I got 'D' as my choice."

"Me too! Phew, I feel more relieved now."

"Good! Well, I've got to head to my bus now…bye Anrya!"

"Bye!" I waved a friend of mine goodbye. Then I looked around the bus circle for my bus, found it, and sat inside. For a while I sat down quietly and relaxed, but as I waited for the school bus to take off, I got impatient, took out my cell phone and found a text message in it. Unable to tell whose number this was, I took curiosity in the new message. In my inbox, I opened up the message, read it, and found the contents to be quite disturbing. It mentioned stuff about a mafia, a family, a flame, being the boss, and a lot more. I read the whole content, and took all the information in. Most of the content I understood, but some I did not. Basically, the message told me about the mafia life, its system, some kind of flames, and asked me to be the boss of a new family that I would supposedly create. What kind of prank this was, I didn't know, but uneasy about the message, I thought of erasing it just like I did to other pranks, creepy, anonymous, or advertising messages. Strangely enough though, something about this message made me keep it in my inbox. Not erasing the message, I put away my phone and tried to keep my mind off of it on the bus ride home. When I got home, I put away all my stuff, kicked back and relaxed…or at least tried to. My mind kept drifting back to the text message that I received. _Calm down Anrya, it's probably just a prank or something…yeah, the contents were really fictional…_ Assuring myself, but not quite, I was able to relax somewhat. In order to fully get my mind off the matter, I turned on the TV and watched some shows. After a while, my mind _did_ get off the message, and I was calm. For another week I felt some unease with the text message, but by the end of the week, I put the matter to the back of my mind and stopped paying attention to it. And so I lived blissfully for a while, until I received an anonymous email one day. The email had the same contents as the text message that I received on the last day of school with a bolded message asking me to be the boss of a new family I was supposed to create. It didn't even give me a choice on the matter! Feeling really creeped out, I contemplated the idea of informing my parents and/or the police, but dismissed the thought because it was too extreme. Besides, I didn't want my parents or the police to interfere with my personal life, so taking a chance I replied to the email with the question: "Who are you?" _What I'm doing is so unsafe. What if the other person is a kidnapper or a blackmailer or a murderer…if that wasn't bad enough, now they know my cell phone number, my email, my name, and possibly more…ohhh…this is bad._ Set on edge, I was about to log off when a chat box of someone I didn't know popped up. _Should I answer it…?_ Knowing what I was doing was unsafe, but curiosity getting the better of me, I opened up the chat box and read it.

**00Lotus: Who am I? Well, that would be giving away information to a stranger~**

**Anrya: …Well, you know my name already and probably more, so it would be unfair to not tell me what your name is…**

_I shouldn't be conversing with this person...He/she is probably not going to tell me their name; what cyber-predator would? Well if he or she does something to me or threatens me…I'll…tell my parents or call the police._ Knowing I didn't have the guts or the will to really do so, I continued to find ways to reassure myself. Thankfully I had a good poker face and a really good composure, since my parents couldn't tell the turmoil going on in my head as they passed by me.

**00Lotus: Hmhmhm~ I guess you have a point there. Well since I **_**do**_** know much about you as you said, I tell you a little bit about me…well technically it's the two of us.** **My name is Zero and my partner here is Ren; hence the username 00Lotus~**

**Anrya: That's not much considering what you know about me. Anyways, no one would have a name such as Zero, and also, Lotus has nothing to do with Ren. You're probably lying.**

**00Lotus: You're quite sharp in some aspects, but no, I'm not lying. As for the name Ren, it **_**does**_** have to do with a lotus. The name Ren has the meaning of lotus in it in Japanese, so I am not lying. Anyways, your username has no discreetness in it, so it would be wrong to blame us for knowing your name.**

"…" This person was quite snarky in some ways, but he seemed pretty intelligent too. Just in curiosity, I looked up the name Ren on Google and found that what this person Zero said was true. _But even though what he said was true, he could still be lying…_ Struggling with the thought, I continued to converse with this mysterious person.

**Anrya: Tell me one more thing. How old are you two? AND DON'T LIE!**

**00Lotus: …Well Anrya-chan, we're both in the mid-teens~**

**Anrya: …**

**00Lotus: Anyways back on the matter. By now you know some things about us, so do you mind cooperating with us~?**

**Anrya: What! What makes you think I'd trust or cooperate with you so easily? I still don't really know you guys, nor do I trust you.**

**00Lotus: Person change Anrya-chan. Hello, this is Ren. I understand your distrust, but please understand us. We are not bad people. You probably have the idea of us being cyber-predators, but we are not. We merely wish to gain your trust and cooperation on the matter.**

"…" What they've been saying so far was pretty reliable and believable, but I was still cautious of them and there was no way was I going to put my trust in them. _What I'm doing is probably breaking all the safety rules of internet usage._ Deciding to risk it, I took their bait.

**Anrya: …I guess…I'll hear you out online, but not today. Also, if you ever do anything funny, I'll tell the authorities.**

**00Lotus: Thank you.**

**00Lotus: (Zero) Hmhmhm~ I know as well as you do that you wouldn't do that~**

_**00Lotus has logged off.**_

_Hmph, what an arrogant guy._ Though I was uneasy about the two people, I couldn't help feel that they weren't too bad… and so every day of the week, I went online at a certain time and conversed with them. The two told me about many interesting thing, some of which I accepted, others in which I could not. I still didn't trust them much, and sometimes I outright doubted them. What unfolded before my eyes was an extraordinary event that happened only in stories and rarely in life. One day, I decided to ask them the question that was circling in my mind.

**Anrya: Hey Zero, Ren, what did you mean by me becoming a boss?**

**00Lotus: Hm~? Well that's something we can't fully tell you about until you whole-heartedly decide to join us.**

**Anrya: …Well, it's not like you're giving me a choice. -_-**

**00Lotus: True, but your cooperation is still required~**

**Anrya: …I'll think about it.**

"Anrya!" my mom called out from the kitchen, "get off the computer and get some fresh air outside. You need to rest your eyes and breathe in some fresh air. I don't want you cooped up in the house by the computer all summer long!"

"Yeah, ok mom," I said rolling my eyes.

**Anrya: I've got to go now. My mom wants me to take a break from the computer and go outside.**

I logged off my email and got off the computer. Walking upstairs to my room, I picked out a book, took my iPod, and headed outside.

_Where should I go…_Outside of my house, I shifted back and forth and pondered where I would go to kill some time outside. _I guess I'll walk around the block or around the neighborhood and then go to the park._ So putting on my earphones and turning on my iPod, I started to walk around the neighborhood. First I went around my block, then around another block, and then I started to wander a bit. At one point during my wandering, I thought I saw two people up on a pine tree, but when I looked back on it, I only saw two black birds on the tree branch. I shrugged and walked on. Now heading towards the park, I navigated my way through the neighborhood. I walked on the sidewalk with a good rhythm in my ear as I took turns here and there. When I got near the park, I saw two peculiar teenage boys up ahead. One was a white haired boy and the other was a boy with long deep blue hair. _Weird, I've never seen those two around here. Maybe they just came to hang out?_ Either way I went towards the park. Inside the park, there were two sets of playgrounds, one on woodchips, and the other on sand. The playground on the woodchips was ideally more interesting and fun because it was meant for the younger kids, but since I wasn't in the playing mood, I headed for the playground on the sand. On the playground on the sand, there was a swing set; two regular swings and two baby swings. Heading for the swings, I sat down on one of them, took out my book and started to read. Though there were benches around the park, I found it more comfortable sitting on the swings. The park was peacefully quiet. There were no games going on in the baseball diamond, or on the soccer field, or anywhere else; it was just me, the book, the park, and two random teenage boys that I saw earlier. Peeking out of my book, I glanced at what the two boys were doing. Currently they were on the other playground talking to each other. _Nothing out of the ordinary from them._ Usually I was wary of teenagers who came to the park because it meant trouble, but these two teenage boys seemed ok. So continuing to read, I gently swung on the swings. For a while I read and swung quietly until a light breeze blew my bookmark to the sand. Keeping a finger on the page I was on, I got off the swings and retrieved my bookmark. As I did this, I observed that the two boys were now climbing the maple tree by the other playground. What they were doing was pretty cool, but it was also dangerous. I tsked in my mind at the two boys' recklessness, but when the white haired boy climbed the tree and came back down lithely, swiftly and skillfully; I had to admit that they were very good at climbing trees. _I wish I knew how to climb trees like that_ I thought a bit enviously, but I kept to myself and resumed my reading. By this time, the two boys where relaxing by the tree; the white haired boy on the branches and the long blue haired boy on the base of the tree. For a moment I wondered what would happen if that boy fell off the tree, but quickly dismissed that thought and continued to read my book. Soon I was deeply into the book as I swung forward and back evenly. Ten to fifteen minutes went by without any incident. Then my attention was taken away from the book. The white haired boy had jumped down from the tree and headed towards the swing seat next to me. I was impressed and even amazed how the boy jumped so lithely from the tree to the ground, but continued to pay no mind to him as he came to the swing seat next to me and sat down. There the boy swung forward and back, forward and back, until he got high in the air and jumped off. Then the long blue haired boy would get on, swing back and forth until he got high enough in the air and jumped off too. This went on for a while until the two felt bored with it and complicated their game. This time the white haired boy stood on the seat and swung forward and back until he got high enough in the air to jump off. What came next astounded me. The white haired jumped off the swing, flipped in the air and landed neatly in the sand. Something that would be seen in gymnastics was done by this boy. Shocked and unable to contain my amazement I asked, "Woah, where did you learn to do that?"

The two turned to look at me. The white haired boy answered. "Hm~? Oh that. I learned how to do that on my own," he said, looking away. His face was void of expression, but when he turned to look at me again, he flashed a wicked smile. "Jealous~?"

I smiled a bit and shrugged. "It was pretty cool." Then a moment later I asked, "Are you guys from around here? I haven't seen you guys here before, but a lot of teenagers like to come to this park and I haven't been here in a while…" My voice trailed off.

"No, we don't live in this area of this neighborhood," said the long blue haired boy. "Like you said, we just came here because this park was large."

"Oh, ok…Hey, how old are you guys? (If you don't mind me asking)"

"We're both fifteen," replied the white haired boy. "And you?"

"Twelve."

"Hm~ I'm guessing you're a sixth grader."

I nodded. "Going into seventh grade next year. And you must be…in ninth grade?"

The two nodded. Just then I got a call from my mom. I picked it up. "Yeah mom?...Come home?...You need to go to a meeting?...Uh huh…Uh huh…Ok…I guess I can babysit my baby brother…ok coming…bye." Closing my phone I got off the swing seat and collected my stuff. "I have to go now~" The two waved me goodbye, and I left.

For the rest of the day, I spent my time at home babysitting my baby brother and going on the internet.

**00Lotus: Ah I see you're back Anrya~**

**Anrya: Why? You've been waiting for me online? That's creepy.**

I didn't get an answer.

**Anrya: So what now.**

**00Lotus: (Ren) Do you have an answer on the matter of joining us yet?**

**Anrya: I told you. I don't and won't trust you guys until you give us more information.**

**00Lotus: …**

**00Lotus: Fine. I will give a bit of information right now, but in return you must meet us tomorrow at your neighborhood park and talk with us. That would be the best way to explain things. A piece of information I can give you is that Zero and I belong to an organization that we technically created. For years we've been trying to form families that were to thrive in the mafia world, but we failed many times… Anyways, we have something called Frammenti Rings that are to be given to a compatible family. This was a…deal we made with our master in exchange for him teaching us. We haven't succeeded in forming a family that lasted long with these rings yet, but we believe you may be able to achieve this. When I saw you had a sky flame, I believed that you would be able to do something with these rings.**

**Anrya: Woah wait a moment! I'm not meeting a random stranger anywhere! Plus, if I have this so called sky flame, why can't you find anyone else with this sky flame? After all, you've been trying out many people, why not try again?**

**00Lotus: Because we do not wish to make a mistake again. Most of the people I chose before, I must say, were not the best of choice looking back. I hadn't checked out their flames, yet I placed them in a position of authority. That was a mistake on my part. **

**Anrya: -_-…I have mixed feelings about all this. Like, what would happen to me if I were to fail like the others, why drag others into all this, where do I find these people, how do I know if they'll listen, etc.**

**00Lotus: …I see, well that I can explain to you in person tomorrow. We'll see you at the park tomorrow. Bye.**

_**00Lotus has logged off.**_

**Anrya: Wait!**

"Ugh," I muttered. I logged out of my email and turned off my computer. For a while I took care of my baby brother and played with him, but when he fell asleep and I had free time on my hand, my mind wandered to the proposal Zero and Ren made me. _Should I meet them tomorrow? Should I not? Well meeting strangers is dangerous so I shouldn't… but I'm curious on what they have to tell me…Ugh, what if I get into trouble with them? What if they stalk me to my house—wait they know where I live—so what if they blackmail me or-or-or_ My mind was in turmoil for a while. It was not until my mom came home that I felt safer and came to a conclusion. _Ok, if my mom tells me to go to the park tomorrow, I'll go. If she says no, then I have an excuse…sort of. If I do go, I'll make sure to talk with people around and keep my phone on 911…But I think I don't have the choice to not go because no matter how many times I postpone it, the two can invade my house or something or…_ I rested my head on the wall as my mind began to spin again.

In the end, I ended up in the park the next day.

"Looks like I'm here," I sighed to myself. _Now where are these people…_ I looked around the park to see if there were any signs of the two people that I talked with online, but found none. I felt nervous on the inside, but made sure it didn't show on the outside. I always disliked whenever the main character of any story showed signs of weakness right in front of their enemy in a pathetic way, but why I was comparing myself to that main characters beats me. I must read too much like my friends say.

"He-ey~!" cried out a person from the swings. I looked to see who it was and found it to be the white haired boy from yesterday. I saw that he was with his friend as well. Still busy looking for Zero and Ren, and not quite friendly with those two boys, I smiled and waved at them silently. When I was about to turn away though, the white haired boy motioned for me to come to the swings. I sighed. I was reluctant to go over to them. It wasn't because they were bad people (I knew that since I can tell from how they acted yesterday in the park), it was just that I didn't know them _that _well and plus I was looking for Zero and Ren. _Maybe Zero and Ren are late…I guess I can play with those two over there for a while…_ I headed towards the two and when I got to them I started off by saying: "Hey—" I stopped short, realizing I didn't know the names of the two boys. "Uh, sorry for not asking yesterday but what are your names?"

"Hmhmhm~ Glad you asked Anrya," said the white haired boy. I stiffened for a moment. _How did he know my name? Did I mention it yesterday?_ "My name is Zero and the person next to me is Ren~"

My mouth went dry. _These _two were Zero and Ren? Well that was a surprise, though I should've realized or at least considered that. For a split second I wondered if I should walk away, but I felt no malice or bad intentions from the two, so I casually sat down on a free swing and swayed on it. "So, are you going to tell me anything on what I want to know?" I was glad to hear that I sounded casual and undaunted by the way the two got to me.

"Before that, we require your commitment," Ren said to me.

I remained silent for a while, but then answered, "Fine, I will, but the things that I am to do will not be forced upon me, ok?"

"Hm~ Agreed, but that doesn't mean you'll avoid responsibility~" Zero said.

I just grunted in response. And so the two began to tell me in detail about the mafia. Of course they couldn't tell me _everything_, but I was content with the information that I received.

"So wait, your saying these flames are like some kind of special power thing?" I said in the middle of Zero and Ren's explanations.

"Yes, but not quite in the way you think of it. It is not really a mystical thing, but more of an…embodiment of your attribute…"

I nodded in understanding. "Oh ok, I get it. It's kind of like an aura, but not really…but I do understand what you are saying." Then after listening more to their talking I interrupted them once more. "Do you mind showing me this flame you're talking about? I mean, I understand that I can't see all of them, but I still would like to see the proof of them."

"Very well." Zero and Ren both took out a ring and lit it up with a flame. Ren's flame was rain and Zero's was mist.

I looked at the flames in awe. It was like seeing something out of a story book or a movie. A part of me knew that what I was going into would change my life forever and that I should back out before things got complicated, but a bigger part of me wanted to embrace this new exciting truth and be a part of it. "Um, I know you mentioned the properties of each flame, but do you mind demonstrating your flame Zero?" I asked shyly. _Illusion making must be really cool…_

"Hmhmhm~" Zero agreed to my request and demonstrated the art of illusions. It was really quite amazing. They talked, I listen and sometimes asked questions, until nearly two hours had passed in the park and I had to go home. There were so many other questions I wanted to ask that I was surprisingly reluctant to go back home, but we planned to meet online and at the park whenever it was possible, so I agreed and went home. And as I went home I thought _I guess not everyone in the mafia are bad or scary…_ of course I knew they could just act like they were nice to me to get my cooperation and such, but for now, things were fine with me.

* * *

><p>"So wait," Crystal interrupted, "how did this lead up to you stalking us?"<p>

"I wasn't stalking you guys, I was just getting to know people better," I muttered.

"I wanna hear the rest of the story," Selina said.

"Sure you did," Jasmine said, ignoring Selina's comment, "From what I remember on the day we met at this mansion, you were clearly being a stalker."

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK*<strong>

"_Hehehe, shocker huh. Well, sit down guys," Anrya said, sitting back down. The group, excluding Ace, took a seat on the available couches. "Ok, before anyone can ask any questions, I'm just gonna give you a little summary on what's going on. Ok…um…I'm the boss, your boss, of this family. My name is Anrya. About a year and a half ago, a random guy just came up to me and placed the position of family boss on me. I still have no idea why, but yeah…So anyways, I needed guardians, so I traveled around to look for some skillful and potential people. And this is how I found you guys." Turning towards Esa and Jasmine, Anrya said, "For one year, I went to your middle school as a seventh grader and hung out with you guys. Then I moved." Turning away from the two girls, Anrya looked at Crystal. "During the summer break of my seventh grade, I went to Korea with another person and found you. I passed by you a couple of times somewhere, but other than that, you didn't notice me." Glancing at the maroon haired boy behind Crystal, Anrya continued, saying, "During that same summer vacation, I came to Japan. One day while walking around the neighborhood, I saw you Rai. I followed you around for some time to see what you were like." Looking away from Rai, Anrya focused her eyes on the brown haired girl. "Selina, I came to your school as an eighth grade transfer student. I've crossed paths with you a couple of times and was surprised when one day, you casted an illusion." Anrya grinned. Facing toward the last unmentioned person in the room, Anrya said, "Darke…" then glanced at the pink haired boy and added, "…and Ryo, I saw you guys… about three months ago in a library. It was interesting to see that you two knew how to use your flames. I was lucky enough one day to see you guys show some interesting teamwork, skills, and abilities…" Anrya trailed off. "Well that's basically what happened so far. Are there any questions, comments, concerns?"_

***END OF FLASHBACK***

* * *

><p>Esa nodded in agreement with Jasmine. "Yeah, thinking back to that day, the way you told us how you knew us was really stalker-like."<p>

"It was nice to know that I had a secret admirer following me around," Rai said jokingly.

I just rolled my eye and waved off the comment. "Fine, whatever~ Think whatever you like, but let me continue my story. I'm getting to the part of how I met you guys anyways."

_Tap…tap…tap…_ I woke to the sound of tiny tapping noises to my window, or more correctly, I was about to fall asleep when I heard distinct tapping noises at my window. Tired, I just ignored the sound for a while. _Tap…tap…tap…_ The tapping noises continued. _Oh my God, that sound is so annoying. It sounded like something was repetitively hitting my window._ For a while, the sound irritated me as I tried to fall asleep, but as it continued in its repetitive rhythm, my brain soon wired itself to use that repetitive sound to lull me to sleep. I began to fall asleep once more. _Tap…tap…tap…tap…thunk…tap…tap…tap….tap…thunk…_ The sound of something heavier than the previous taps woke me up once more. _What the heck is that?_ At first I thought it was the neighbor next door making all the noise (since they could be noisy at times and there house is just 3-4 meters away from ours), but quickly rejected that thought since I believed something was directly hitting my glass window. I sighed heavily and pulled the covers snuggly over my head and tried to go back to sleep. _Tap…tap…tap…thunk…thunk…thunk…tap…thunk…THWAP!_ I sat up in bed. "What the heck!" Getting out of my bed I headed toward my window and lifted the curtains.

—**STARE—**

I jumped. There was a floating upside down head at my window. I was shocked and speechless for a moment, but thawed out from it quickly. Opening my window I talked through the bug screen to a Zero who looked down at me from the roof with a piercing stare. "What are you doing on my roof?" I said, inclining my head upward for a better view.

Zero smiled and his mismatched eyes glittered in the dark. I shivered at his stare. I still hadn't gotten used to his mismatched eyes. Ever since he revealed that to me at the park, I wasn't able to stop staring at those abnormal eyes. "Just stopping by to tell you some things~"

"What is it?" I asked.

"Can I tell you inside?"

"What!" The thought of having a guy in my room in the middle of the night was unheard of. If my parents found a fifteen year old teenager in my room in the middle of the night…what they would think, I don't know. Just the thought of it made my face go red. Thankfully it was dark and no one could see my reaction. I sighed. "Fine, you can come in, but keep your shoes off my room floor." I opened the bug screen and stuck my head out. Down below I saw that Ren was standing around with pinecones, pebbles, and a water bottle in hand. I pulled my head back into my room and Zero came in through the window. Taking off his shoes and placing them on the ledge of my window, he got himself comfortable and began to talk. What he talked about was of finding recruits to my to-be family. Self-conscious on my appearance, I sat down hugging my knees while listening. After Zero briefly said what he had to, I spoke. "Wait a minute, I have to literally go around the world to find recruits? No way!"

"It's the only way. Just step out of your comfort zone for a while and take responsibility Anrya~"

"What, no! Anyways, how do I explain traveling around the world to my parents? No way will they allow it!"

"Hmhmhm~ Leave that to us. You do the rest." With that Zero got up and put on his shoes. Before he left though, he tossed me a packet of names with information of some people in the mafia. "If you can't decide who to add to your family, you can pick and choose from that list." And with that, Zero jumped out the window and landed safely on the ground. Then he and Ren walked away.

"Hmph." But with him and Ren gone, I peacefully skimmed through the packet and looked through a list of names with information of that person on the side. I thought of picking random people on the list, but remembered that these people would always be with me and thought better of it. I wouldn't want people I didn't like to be a part of my to-be family. So I sat there and looked through the list for most of the night before I fell asleep.

_-SEVENTH GRADE YEAR-_

I walked through the halls of a middle school located in the five borough area of New York. During the summer of my sixth grade year, I struggled with the decision of choosing people for my family. I asked Zero and Ren about choosing members and they told me that a family could have any age group, but having an adult could be advantageous. I didn't feel quite right with having an adult in my to-be family, so I settled with people around my age. I searched through the packet of mafia people and looked to see if they had any children my age. When I found some, I decided to actually go meet/see them and decide if I liked them. And that's what I was doing at this new middle school. Thankfully it wasn't too far from my own home, so my mom was somehow fine with it (I still don't know how Zero and Ren convinced her but oh well).

"Hey Anrya!" said one of my friends at this school named Esa. She came along with her friend Jasmine as usual.

"Hey guys." Though these two were one year younger than me, we became good friends. When school first started, I searched them out and began to talk to them. We soon became friends when we realized both our families were involved with the mafia (of course that wasn't so true on my part). We hung out a lot and had fun. I decided that I wanted them in my to-be family.

_-SUMMER OF SEVENTH GRADE YEAR-_

I was in Korea visiting my grandparents. Well the real reason was to find a girl named Crystal and see if she was fit to join my family, but of course my parents did not know that. To put a long story short, I saw her, followed her around a bit, and took note of her. When I was fully convinced that she was a decent person, I put her on my list of members to recruit. Then I went to Japan.

In Japan, I went looking around for potential people. Though I had no real purpose there, I thought it would be good to look around (but I mostly went there to relax and sight see). Zero and Ren had told me that Japan would be where my family base would be, so I wanted to see how the country of Japan was like. One day I saw Rai at the park. He was fit and athletic and played around a lot. I found myself considering him to my family. Though he wasn't part of the mafia, I was still allowed to add him in. From my observation, he seemed like a potential person. I needed a guy in my family anyways.

_-EIGHTH GRADE YEAR-_

In the beginning of my eighth grade year, I transferred to a school in Canada. My goal was at first to find the person I saw on the list. When I actually met that person though, I immediately disliked him. Feeling disappointed at my find, I planned to leave Canada and search elsewhere, but one day I saw a normal girl my age casting an illusion. Her name was Selina. She was the same age as me, the same grade, and to my delight; she had the same birthday as me. I crossed paths with her, talked to her several times, and learned of her background a bit while I stayed at that school. Then I went to England to find one last member to fit into my family.

Towards the middle of my eighth grade year, I transferred yet again to a school in England. There I searched for a person to be the last member of my family. I was determined to find a guy this time. So far my list of who were going to be in my to-be family was all girls except for one guy, so it seemed a bit unbalanced (plus I felt bad for that one guy). So I looked around England for a while quite unsuccessfully, when one day I came across Darke and Ryo. I wasn't really within their vicinity, but I was close enough to see Darke and Ryo use flame. I was astounded and amazed. This was only my second (or was it considered my third?) time seeing flame. I immediately decided to add these them to the family, so I followed them to the orphanage they apparently lived at and got their information.

* * *

><p>"And that," I said, "is the end of my story." With that, conversation started around me.<p>

"So that's how this all started," Esa commented.

"Fun story," Selina said.

"Looks like you and Zero had something going on back then~" Jasmine said in a teasing voice.

"Oh, shut up," I said with a smile.

We all teased, joked around, and talk for a while we waited for Ren. Then finally, Ren came in.

"The lesson will now commence," Ren said.

Next to me I saw Esa grin. "You know it's hard to see you the same way after Anrya's story."

Ren just raised an eyebrow.

* * *

><p><strong>So how was my first backstory thing?<strong>


	17. Rai's Little Tale

**A.N.-**** Second (sort of) backstory-ish thing~**

_**Disclaimer:**_** KHR not mine.**

* * *

><p><strong>Rai's P.O.V.<strong>

"So is that how you got it?" Anrya asked Selina.

"Got what?" Selina asked in confusion.

"Your ability to cast illusions."

"No."

"Then how did you? From what I observed and know about you, you never had any contact with the mafia forces, so there are limited possibilities on how you could've gotten the ability to cast illusions…"

I nodded in agreement as did the others. It was quite rare for a person without any contact with the mafia to suddenly show signs of flame use…at least, that was what I heard.

Selina shrugged. "I don't know when my ability developed, but I just know that I have it so…"

Anrya looked dissatisfied with the answer, but didn't press on. For a while we went back to eating our lunches. It was a nice day outside for a day in December, with a slightly chilly breeze. Eating lunch under the sakuras and maples was quite relaxing.

"Hmmm…maybe if I dissected you and observed you from the inside…or observed your brain a bit I can figure out how you got your ability," Gray said to Selina with nonchalance.

Selina shivered. "Uh, no thank you Gray."

"Relax, I was only joking," Gray said twirling her fork.

"Oh," Selina said with a sigh of relief.

"Scary," Crystal commented.

Gray snorted.

"Well let's go back to what we were talking about before," Anrya said, finishing up her lunch. "We still have ten minutes left in the lunch period, so it's your turn, Rai, to tell us about your home life."

"Eh? Sure," I said. I thought of where I would begin in my story. Unlike the others, I didn't think I had much of an interesting story. My parents didn't travel all over the world like Selina's did, my parents weren't ever part of the mafia, like Esa, Jasmine, and Crystal's parents were, and I didn't have a strange occurrence in my life like Anrya did. I pretty much had a normal life. "Uh, I guess I'll start from my second year in middle school…"

* * *

><p>"Run Rai-kun!"<p>

I glanced back as I ran across the school property with a jacket in my hand. It wasn't my jacket, it was a jacket that belonged to a fellow classmate of mine, but since we were playing keep-away, I had the jacket in my possession and was running away from my pursuer.

"Oi baka! Give me my jacket back!" My classmate ran after me, gasping for breath.

I grinned. "Come and get it~!" I shouted over my shoulders as I ran. I ran in circles, zig-zags, around objects, and so forth, until I had covered most of the school grounds. This chase went on for a while until the pursuer behind me tired out and sat on the ground. I stopped and turned around. "Tired already?"

Too tired and out of breath to reply, he just huffed and gasped and gave me an exasperated look. I waited a minute for him to catch his breath, and when he did, he tiredly said, "Can I just have my jacket back? Please?"

I sighed, then smiled. "Sure." With a toss, I returned the jacket back to its owner. Then turning on my heels, I walked to the soccer field and climbed up the post.

"Sempai, lunch period is almost over, don't you think we should head back in?"

I looked down from the goal post. A first year student looked up at me. "Nah, I'm gonna rest a bit before I head back in. I got a nice exercise with Itsuki-kun there, and now I have to rest my muscles."

"Eh? Exercise?"

"That's pretty rough of you Rai-sempai, seeing how you're way more athletic than Istuki-sempai~" Another first year came up to me with a grin.

I grinned back down at him and said, "Well it was still fun~"

_**Beeeeeeeeeeep**_

"Ah that was the bell sempai!"

"Looks like we're gonna be late as usual."

I jumped down from the post and landed next to the two first years. "Well, looks like we have to go in." I walked with the two into the school.

"Sempai, are you going to be at the park today for a game of soccer after school?" asked one of the first years.

"Yup."

"Hey Rai-sampai," said the other first year, "this is just rumor on the street, but is it true you got slapped by Kiku-chan the other day for flirting with her?"

I gave him a look. "Ah…"

"I guess it's true then. Not only does Rai-sempai go for most of the girls in his grade, but also the younger girls in my grade." The first year kid gave me a sly look. "What's next? Are you going to ask out an upper classman next? Perhaps Mai-sempai in the third year?"

I just laugh and tousled the kid's hair. "Be quiet~"

* * *

><p>"—You seem to have a pretty normal life," said Esa, interrupting my story.<p>

"M'hm" said Crystal in agreement.

"So, how many girls did you have in your second year?" asked Gray.

"Huh?"

"I _said_ how many girls did you have in your second year? You seemed to be quite the playboy then. Were you like that throughout your whole middle school years?"

I gave a lopsided grin. "Actually, I've never dated a single one of them~"

"Well that's surprising," Anrya said. "I thought you would've definitely dated a lot of girls."

I just waved my hand at her. "Nah, they were ok—some were cute—but they weren't my type so, all I did was hang out with them~"

"That's a bit hard to believe," Jasmine commented.

"So anyways, what about your parents?" asked Selina, "What are they like?"

"Well…" I thought a moment. "I don't know."

"Hm? What do you mean 'I don't know'? You live with your parents, so can't you tell us a bit about them?" said Anrya.

"Actually I live with my grandma," I corrected.

"Huh?"

"Yeah, I live in my grandma's home. My parents are usually busy with work, so they came home really late and leave really early often. When I was little, I remember them being busy, but as I grew up, they've got even busier." I thought back to when I was little.

"_Rai, you're back from school?"_

"_Uh-huh. Hey mom, can you play a game with me? I learn it at school!"_

"_Not now honey. Sorry, but I have a lot forms to fill out by tomorrow. Go ask your dad."_

"_Hey dad?"_

"_Hmm? What is it Rai?"_

"_Can you play a game with me?"_

"_I'm busy right now Rai. Why don't you go do your homework first, and maybe I'll play with you later."_

"_Ok..."_

"Eh~ Really?" said Anrya. "I remember my parents used to work like that too, and that I'd stay over at my grandparents' house, but now they're usually home when I am."

"My parents are pretty busy too since they travel all over," said Selina.

"Hey Rai, so, do your parents know about you joining the mafia?" asked Esa.

"Hm? No, and neither does my grandma. And I told you, I live with my grandma."

"Yeah, I know that, but I'm pretty sure you see your parents some time during the day at your grandma's house."

"No, I mean that my parents live separately rom me," I said.

"_Rai."_

"_Yes mom?"_

"_Starting tomorrow, you're going to stay with grandma."_

"_Are we going there to visit her?"_

"_No, you're going to live with grandma from now on."_

"_Huh?"_

"_You're going to go to school in grandma's town and live in her house. The community there is really great and the school system is amazing, so things will be fine."_

"_Mom, you're not coming?"_

"_No, I can't Rai. Your dad and I just got a promotion at our job sites and we can't stay home too long. We're worried about you staying home by yourself all the time, so we decided it would be good if you stayed with grandma from now on."_

"_I can stay home. I'll be fine."_

_My mom shook her head._

"_But I don't want to leave you and dad!"_

"_Don't worry, daddy and I will take you to grandma's house tomorrow."_

"_But…but why do I have to stay there by myself? And anyways, don't you and dad have work tomorrow?"_

"_We decided we would spend the day off and be with you. Tomorrow we'll go to the zoo, eat yummy food, have ice-cream, and a lot more before we drop you off at grandma's house. Doesn't that sound fun?" My mom smiled at me._

"_I…guess so."_

_The next day I had lots of fun with my parents and did lots of things with them. I was pretty happy even though I knew that I'd be living separately from them. When I finally got to grandma's house though, I felt a bit sad._

"_Ok Rai, mommy and daddy's going to go now. Be a good boy to grandma, ok?"_

"_Ok mom." I sniffled._

"_Now, now, don't cry."_

"_I'm not crying."_

_My mom smiled at me. "Of course you're not. After all you're a big boy now, right?"_

_I nodded._

"_I know mommy and daddy can count on you to be a good boy. After all, Rai is nice, Rai is good at sports, Rai makes lots of friends, and Rai does well at school. You're going to make your parents proud, right?"_

_I nodded again._

"_Since Rai is really the best son in the world, I know you'll be a great kid and make all those around you smile. So Rai, you should smile too."_

_I wiped away any loose tears._

"_Don't worry Rai, we'll visit you when we can, so smile and be a good boy, ok?"_

_And with that my parents left. As they said, they did visit me. At first it was everyday, then every other day. But soon they visited less and less as they got busier. At one point they only visited during the holidays and my birthday, but soon they stopped coming all together. Now, all I got were letter and post cards, but I didn't ever feel lonely. Like my mother had told me too, I looked into every day with a smile._

"Oh, so what you're saying is that it's only you and your grandma?" said Anrya.

"Yup."

"Do you miss your family?" Crystal asked.

"Hmm~" I played with my chopsticks. "Sometimes, but not much~ Anyways, I have a pretty cute family here with lots of people I like."

Esa snorted.

_**Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep**_

"Ah! I think it's time we go back in," said Anrya. "Class is going to start again soon."

"You might want to hurry then," said Gray. "Zero, Ren, Ace, and Darke already left."

"Shoot!" We all scrambled to our feet and collected our things. "C'mon, run guys, we're going to be late!"

We all ran for the school doors, all the while smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>owo<strong>


	18. Darke's Past

**A.N.-**** Ah so how long has it been since I last updated...eh let's see...about ten months give or take ^^; ? Well to those who have been waiting and waiting and waiting for each new chapter, I'm very sorry for the hiatus~ , Please forgive me! Anyways, I've been reading through my past chapters and...they made me barf. I found so many grammer, spelling and plot error that I just _had_ to do something about it. So I edited all 18 chapters and I'm going to be re-uploading the re-edited versions of them. So for those who watch me, ignore the multiple nonifications that pop up saying that I posted millions of new chapters~ Also if you want, you can re-read from the start since you may see some plot changes owo**

_**Disclaimer:**_** I have disclaimed.**

* * *

><p><strong>Darke's P.O.V.<strong>

"_So is that how you got it?" Anrya asked Selina._

"_Got what?" Selina asked in confusion._

"_Your ability to cast illusions."_

"_No."_

Standing and leaning against one of the maple trees, I silently listened to the rambling and chatter of the others at the picnic tables. It was lunch time at school, and we were all gathered in this one spot. Half-eaten lunch laid around on the picnic tables, forgotten by their owners who were chattering happily with each other.

"_Well let's go back to what we were talking about before," Anrya said, finishing up her lunch. "We still have ten minutes left in the lunch period, so it's your turn, Rai, to tell us about your home life."_

Anrya and the others were sharing tales of their lives, and now it was Rai's turn to speak. I listened to every story, and so far, they were all mundane and quite typical. Rai then started his story. Listening to him speak, I quickly lost interest in his normal life. I continued to stand with my back to the tree in silence. As Rai continued his story, I thought back to my past.

* * *

><p><em>Sigh. <em> "Again. It looks like you're getting moved _again_." My social worker looked at me in exasperation. The past week had been, according to her, a "disaster". Apparently my previous foster parents at that house said that they had trouble with me and my brother, so they decided that they could no longer care for us. Not that they've ever cared. Sure they provided us with a home, food, clothing, and all, but it was all so materialist and disgusting. Their false "love" for us, and their overly enthusiastic comments, bored me. Of course because they were like that, they quickly got bored with us too.

"Darke, you really must try your best to communicate and come into mutual understanding with your foster parents," said my social worker. "You and your brother have been moved from house to house for a while now." My social worker quickly glanced at my younger brother who sat quietly next to me probably ignoring what she was saying. She always said the same thing over and over, and it was pretty much a waste of time.

I then stood up. "Well if that's all you have to say, I'll be leaving."

"Darke—"

I already knew what she was going to say, so I coldly cut her off by saying, "I know." I then motioned for my brother to get up and follow me. From my past experiences, I knew it was futile to explain the reasoning behind our actions. Actually, I no longer remember why we distanced ourselves from others, but it was something that we did and I did not regret those actions. Through the years as we went from house to house, I learned several important things. One was that your time there never lasted, two was that you didn't really belong there, and three was that you were never truly loved. At the moment, my brother and I were back at the orphanage. We didn't love this place, but it was bearable compared to the houses of the foster parents. There were staff around here but, they didn't pay attention too often which gave us kids freedom to do as we wished. With this freedom, a pecking order of some sorts came about. Usually the older kids had the most freedom and mobility inside and outside the orphanage due to their age, but they usually didn't come to us. On occasions that they did, we had to obey their every whim unless we wanted to get pounded. Of course Ryo and I were an exception. I made that clear a year ago when I got into a fight with one of the older kids in the orphanage.

* * *

><p><em><strong>-FLASHBACK-<strong>_

"_Hey runts, which one of you stole my wallet from my night stand!"One of the older kids from the orphanage came through the door into the kids' lounge. He was around fifteen years old. Not the oldest kid or the highest in the pecking order of our orphanage, but high enough to hold some authority and power over us kids. "Was it you?" he said with an angry expression, sticking his finger out at some little girl. The little girl quickly shook head and moved away from the boy. "Then it was probably you!" he said to a boy playing with some block. The boy denied it, but the fifteen year old wouldn't believe it. At one point, the boy in the fifteen year old's grip started crying. "Hmph," the fifteen year old said. He continued to walk around the room examining each kid for any sign of suspicion. As he scanned his eyes over the room, his sight landed on a quiet boy with pink hair who sat quietly in the back of the room. Finding suspicion in him, the fifteen year old walked over to him and questioned him. "Hey, you. Did you steal my wallet?" The boy didn't answer and continued to ignore him. This boy was Ryo. He was around eight years old then. "Hey I asked you a question pipsqueak, did you steal my wallet!" Ryo then looked up and shook his head slightly. The boy, not believing Ryo, took him by the collar and growled at his face. "So spill it runt. Did you do it?" Ryo gave a stare at the boy and blankly said, "Your breath stinks." With this remark the boy got into a fit of rage. Near Ryo, but off to the side sitting quietly, was a boy with dark hair and dark eyes. This was Darke. He was reading a book, but when the fifteen year old boy bursted into a fit of rage, the boy with dark hair and dark eyes lifted his gaze and gave a cold stare. He seemed annoyed at the ruckus __caused by the other boy. When the noise wouldn't stop, he got up and steadily walked towards the raging boy. "What do you want?" said he, noticing the Darke's approach._

"_I want you to shut up and leave," Darke answered._

"_What did you say?" the boy snarled._

"_Are you slow? I said Shut. Up. And. Leave." At this, the boy stood up and swaggered over the unflinching Darke. _

_And that's when the fight started._

_Both being amateurs at fighting, the two exchanged many blows and kicks until an adult came rushing over and split them up. Darke, on top of the boy, glared furiously at him as he pinned him down with his leg._

"_Break it up you two," snapped the supervisor. "What's the matter with you!"_

_Growling, the boy said, "I was looking for my wallet when this jerk came up and interfered."_

"_Is that true Darke?" asked the adult._

_Darke snorted with contempt and merely said, "He was being disruptive."_

_With a final sigh, the adult sent them off to their own designated area. _

_The boy turned to face Darke as he left. With a threatening glare that guaranteed more fights to come, the boy left the room. Darke, still annoyed, snorted and went to his corner of the room and went back to reading. And thus, a series of fights occurred almost regularly between Darke and the boy._

* * *

><p>"Darke, Ryo!" someone shouted. I turned around to see a girl about Ryo's age running up to us.<p>

"Hm. What is it," I asked with no interest.

"Ms. Kelly wanted to see you again," said the girl a bit nervously. Ms. Kelly was our social worker from before.

"Tch, what does she want with us now?" I said to no one in general, but the little girl answered anyways.

"She says that a new family wishes to adopt you."

Filled with annoyance, I turned around and walked back into Ms. Kelly's office.

"Darke, Ryo, I have good news! A family wishes to adopt you both. They seem to be a great family with much wealth and a good background. Aren't you excited?"

I was filled more with disgust than excitement. The way we were "adopted" by one family or another made me feel as if we were just pets or livestock. Keeping a straight face, I didn't answer.

Ms. Kelly sighed at me. "You can at least pretend to look excited Darke. Your eyes always seem to be so dark and cold…"

I turned my head away from her after the last comment. "Well anything else you need to tell me about this family that is going to adopt me?"

"No, nothing else," said Ms. Kelly. Gathering her papers and putting them neatly into a pile she said, "Oh I almost forgot, you should pack again since you'll be going right away to this family. Meet me at the front door in two hours. Until then, prepare what you will need." With that she dismissed us from her office.

* * *

><p>After a thirty minute drive, Ms. Kelly, Ryo, and I arrived at the estate of our new foster parents. The two adults were waiting for us in front of their house, and greeted us warmly when we came up to them. After going over formalities, Ms. Kelly left us to the two adults and went back into the car.<p>

"Well Darke, Ryo, have a good time with Mr. and Mrs. Kenji~!" Ms. Kelly gave us a final wave and drove off.

"Darke, Ryo, welcome to our home," Mrs. Kenji said to us. "I hope you like it. If there's anything you need just ask!"

I nodded in reply and walked into the house. The Kenji's house was a pretty impressive place. Being a large two story structure (including a basement), it contained many amazing furniture and décor, as well as many rooms. The living room was a nice cozy place with a fireplace, a large flat screen TV, and a sliding glass door that led to the backyard. The kitchen was impressive as well. It had all the new stovetops, ovens, microwaves, sinks, dishwashers, and cabinets, and it also contained a beautiful island with a granite top. The bathrooms were also amazing too with its new showers, and beautiful sinks. And finally, Mr. and Mrs. Kenji's master bedroom was a sight to behold. From its walk-in closet, to its wonderful skylight and floor to ceiling windows, the room was grand.

"So that's most of the house," Mr. Kenji said after giving us a brief tour of the house, "You guys can go pick your rooms out. Upstairs or downstairs, it doesn't matter, and if you want to have separate rooms, that's fine too."

"We'll share a room upstairs sir," I said with a nod. Since Mr. and Mrs. Kenji's room were downstairs, it might be better to have a room upstairs, so that it was quieter, and less of a place where the two adults could pop in.

"Ok then boys, go to a room and unpack~! Dinner is in an hour," Mrs. Kenji said.

"Thank you," I replied. Mrs. Kenji just gave a warm smile and walked out with Mr. Kenji.

"Let's go Ryo," I said.

After picking out a room on the second floor, we unpacked and sat for a while. Then when dinner time came, we went downstairs and join Mr. and Mrs. Kenji for dinner. After dinner ended, we went back into our room and spent our time there. This went on for a week as Ryo and I went through the motions of playing "good children". It wasn't until two weeks later that everything changed.

"Darke-kun, Ryo-kun, your dad and I are going out to meet an important person," Mrs. Kenji shouted up the stairs to us. I bristled at how she called Mr. Kenji and herself our parents, but I had to deal with it.

"Ok," I replied as I walked down the stairs toward them.

"Remember, keeps all the doors shut, and don't answer the door to strangers," said Mrs. Kenji.

"Also in the case that something does happen," said Mr. Kenji, "don't fight the stranger. Hide."

I scowled, but nodded in response.

"Oh I almost forgot to mention, food is in the fridge and pantry. If you're hungry, there are several meals I left prepared for you. I believe you know how to work all the kitchen ware. And if you boys want to watch something or play something, the living room has all that you need~" Mrs. Kenji gave a smile and finally walked out the door with Mr. Kenji. After they completely left the premise, the security system in and around the house turned on. It had already been two weeks, but the security system in and around the house was something that I was still not used to. From the security gates, to the alarm system, to the security cameras, to the password lock, and many other systems, I couldn't help, but feel as if we were being kept in…or something kept out. It was understandable to want to take security measures for a grand house such as this, but nonetheless the security here was so tight that it was suffocating. Shaking off the feeling, I walked around the house in boredom.

As I walked around the house, I came to cross the door to the basement that was left opened. Usually this door was kept locked and closed from us, but Mr. and Mrs. Kenji must've been in a rush and left the door opened. Closing the door, I stopped right before fully closing. A strange curiosity came over me as I felt compelled to go down the steps into the basement. Looking around, I decided to check out the basement for myself. _Well I never liked being kept in the dark on things. I might as well see what's down there while my foster parents are away._ And with that I descended down the steps. When I got to the bottom, I felt the wall for a light switch and flicked it on. With the room illuminated, I had an interesting sight to behold. The whole room was filled with machines and mechanics. Wall to wall, floor to ceiling, were cords, wires, and machines. What stood in the center of the room was the most interesting of all. A goggle, a ring, and a purple scarf. _What could those possibly be for?_ I thought. Walking over to it, I saw that a journal or a book of some sorts was next to the items. Picking it up, I skimmed through its contents. _Flames…Energy wave chart…Functions…Control manual…_ The contents of the book slightly puzzled me, but some made sense. Glancing at the goggle, the ring, and the purple scarf, I re-read the functions and controls of the materials provided. After reading and somewhat comprehending the text provided for me, I tested out the objects. _Why am I doing this?_ I questioned in the back of my head, but quickly dismissed the thought with the answer that I was bored. So the ring was the main energy source, the scarf was the main weapon, and the goggles were the control panel for the scarf. It seemed simple. I put on the ring on my right middle finger, wrapped the scarf around my neck, and placed the goggles on my face. _Ok now what?_ Glancing at the instructions again, I turned on the goggles through a switch I found on it. Immediately the inside of the goggles turned into a screen (I could still see through it) and several menus popped up. Unable to comprehend most of the menus I toyed with the goggles till I thought I had control of it. The goggles on my face scanned my eyes, and did other complicated computations. When the goggles finally seemed to adjust for me, a menu popped up saying _Insert flame_. _What flame?_ I thought in confusion. Did the goggles expect me to light my face on fire? Sighing, I turned it off and took off the goggles and placed them down. I also untied the scarf, but when I came to take off the ring, I paused and scrutinized it. What could this ring have anything to do with this contraption? Well then again, why were any of these created and what was its purpose? With more questions than answers, I turned to the book once more. _ There's something I'm not understanding_ I thought reading the book again. Flipping to the page about flames, I read it in detail.

… _The Dying Will Flame is a high-density form of energy that is refined from one's own life-force. Due the way how it resonates with one's emotions, it has been regarded as a type of battle aura. However, unlike the aura, which is a supernatural phenomenon that can only be seen by a few individuals, the Dying Will Flame is, in many ways, more alike to a real flame, possessing even its own destructive properties. There are seven flames of the Sky: Sky, Storm, Rain, Sun, Lightening, Cloud, and Mist. The Sky Flame, the rarest among all the seven flames of the sky, is the shade of orange. Among all the other seven flames, it has the greatest propulsion, especially in high-purity. The Sky flame is characterized with the ability of "harmony" and maintains great balance. The Storm flame is the shade of red. The Storm flame is a highly offensive flame with its ability of disintegration that decays and breaks apart anything it touches, other flames included. The Storm flame is characterized with the ability of "disintegration". The Rain flame is the shade of blue. Rain flames are in many ways more similar to water than actual flames. Its Tranquility special trait carries the meaning of stillness and pacification. Thus, these flames can be used to weaken a target by robbing its strength and capacity of movement. The Rain flame is characterized with the ability of "Tranquility". The Sun flame is in the shade of yellow. The Sun Flames has the power to induce and improve the efficiency of any type of activity. As such, it is an optimal flame for purposes of fulfilling support roles such as healing and strengthening individuals. But that same characteristic also makes it difficult to use Sun Flames in direct combat. The Sun flame is best known for stimulating and augmenting. The Sun flame is characterized by the ability of "Activation". The Lightening flame is in the shade of green. Lightning flames are in many ways more similar to electricity than actual flames. The special trait of these flames can be employed to harden and increase the firmness of objects. By themselves, the flames can used defensively by projecting a solid barrier and offensively by cutting as if sharp blades or electrocuting as if real electricity. The Lightening flame is characterized by the ability of "Solidification or Hardening". The Cloud flame is in the shade of purple. The Cloud flames carry a meaning of increase and replication. As such, it is suited for anything that involves increase of size and multiplication of numbers. Also, this flame is highly advantageous when performing techniques meant to cover a great area, such as creating a cyclone or an impervious force field. The Cloud flame is characterized by the ability of "Propagation". Finally, the Mist flame is in the shade of indigo. The special trait of the Mist flame makes it optimal to be used along illusions, especially during the creation of Real Illusions. They are described as having a low hardness and, consequentially, it has a weak offensive power. The Mist flame is characterized by the ability of "Construction"…_

I stopped after that paragraph and closed the book. From reading it, I understood what this "flame" was, but I had no idea how one found out what flame they had or how they materialized it or if such things even existed. Grunting, I took a long glance at the three objects behind me and walked away.

* * *

><p>"So how was your day Darke?" Mrs. Kenji asked at dinner.<p>

"It was fine," I answered.

"What about you Ryo?"

Ryo remained silent for a moment, but then answered, "It was fun."

"I'm glad you boys were doing fine while we were gone," Mr. Kenji commented. We then commenced eating.

After dinner ended, Ryo and I walked out of the dining area and headed for the stairs up.

"Darke, Ryo, do you have a moment?"

I stopped and glanced at Mr. Kenji who stood behind me. _What could it be now?_ "Yes sir." I turned around and walked towards him. Ryo followed close behind.

Mr. Kenji glanced between the both of us and smiled. "I know you guys haven't formally been to the basement of our house yet—" Immediately my mind went back my observation of the basement earlier today. Ryo looked at me. After exploring the basement earlier today, I met up with Ryo and vaguely talked about what I saw in the basement. Telling him not to mention any of it to Mr. and Mrs. Kenji, I thought about what was down there. "—but I want to show you guys some interesting things." Of course I already knew what was down there, but I kept silent and pretended I was interested. Mr. Kenji opened the door to the basement and motioned us to follow him down. Exchanging glances with Ryo, Ryo and I walked down together.

Downstairs, Mr. Kenji walked over to the three objects in the center of the room. "As you already know," he started, "this contraption is designed to work with a flame." He looked at me and gave a pointed look. I was a bit startled that he knew I saw his contraption. "Don't worry Darke, Ryo, I'm not mad or anything~" Mr. Kenji smiled at us. "I'm rather interested that you looked at this and I'm wondering if you'd work with me and help me perfect this." I gave him a questioning look. Mr. Kenji gave a smile. "If you're wondering why I'm asking you to do this, it's because making contraptions like these is my hobby…plus I like to perfect my work." Mr. Kenji lifted up the goggles for me to see. "I work for a…certain organization and as a technician who works there, I have my own interests to create and design new products that can be of use." He set down the goggles and picked up the scarf. "Of course these products are not mass produced, but rather for those selective buyer who want it." Mr. Kenji set down the scarf and turned to look at me. "The special thing about this contraption though, is that I'm not making it to sell, but I'm making it just for my fun and interest." He then turned away and picked up the ring. Holding it between his thumb and index finger, Mr. Kenji observed the ring. "The thing of most importance to this contraption is this ring, or rather, the flame lit on this ring." He placed the ring on his right middle finger and looked at it. I was expecting something to happen, but saw nothing. Mr. Kenji gave a lopsided grin and sighed. "I thought so." He took off the ring and placed it down again. "Looks like I just don't have it in me."

Getting interested, I opened my mouth to speak. "Mr. Kenji, do you mind going over what a flame is for me? I already read what was in that journal, but I'm not sure how one knows what type of flame that one has or how one activates it. Of course I'm just going on the assumption that flames really do exist."

Mr. Kenji gave me an amused smile. "Well flames _do_ exist Darke. I can't personally prove it to you, but I assure you that they exist. As for how to light one…well that has to do with your own resolve. The stronger your resolve or emotion, the stronger your flame will be. I'm not sure how to fully explain it, but your flame has direct connections to your life-force. Now then, as you should know there are seven attributes to the flames of the sky. Equally, there are seven different rings for each attribute. For one to light a flame on a ring, the wave energy flowing through your body and the ring in which you use must match up. The amount and balance of wave energy that flows in a person is a fixed potential from the time you were born. Generally, most humans have several wave energies, but only one of those attributes can ignite a flame with a ring."

"Is there anyone who can light more than one though?"

Mr. Kenji paused for a moment. "Yes, but it's very rare. Almost as rare as finding a sky flame user. Now as to finding out what flame type you are…" Mr. Kenji looked away. "There aren't really many ways you can find out what type of flame you are. You can always use trial and error, but that is highly ineffective." I cocked my head to the side. "But not to worry, that's why I created a machine that can analyze the possible flames one has, how strong each person's flame is, and how likeable it is to ignite a flame on a ring." Mr. Kenji walked to the side of the room and lifted the cover off a machine. "This is what I used to tell what flames I had. From the machine, I found out that I had the flames cloud, lightening, and storm resounding within me. The percentage of each flame to ignite a ring was 70% for the cloud flame, 17% for the lightening flame, and 13% for the storm ring. Of course from the data, I deduced that I should create the contraption suited for a cloud flame. That's why this ring is purple. Sadly, I recently found out that the amount and balance of my wave energy was low. It seems as though that was as much as my potential would go." Mr. Kenji turned to look at me. "This is why I want you two to help."

Looking at my brother then back to Mr. Kenji, I asked, "Why couldn't you ask people from this organization of yours? Why us?"

Mr. Kenji looked down. "This project of mine is for me and only for me. I didn't want the higher ups requesting for my works. Also not many people have the potential to light a flame, and even if they do, they're power is too low."

"Wouldn't that also mean that they're a chance that we don't have the potential either?"

"Yes, but you never know. I'm willing to do anything to have my project completed and perfected." He turned on the machine. "So, will you two help me?"

I gave it a thought and also glanced at Ryo. Ryo merely shrugged his shoulders as if to say _Why not?_ and turned away. Curiosity getting the better of me, I decided to help. "Ok we'll help, but let me ask you something. What will you do after you perfect it?"

Mr. Kenji shrugged. "Who knows? It's just a hobby of mine." He turned away and fiddled with the controls. "Maybe I'll…" His voice trailed off.

_Maybe you'll what?_ Not pushing for more answers, I walked over to Mr. Kenji as he motioned for the both of us to come to him. Walking up to the both of us, he asked us to remove our shirts so that he could properly place the sensor pads on us. We did as we were told, and he proceeded to do his job. Next, he asked us to do a strange thing.

"This is going sound weird, but I want you two to think of a memory. Pleasant, painful, exciting, or whatever, I want you to think of a memory that pulls up a strong emotion."

Giving a slightly skeptical look, Ryo and I did as told. After standing there for five minutes, Mr. Kenji took off the sensor pads from us and waited for the results to show.

"Hm interesting," Mr. Kenji said thoughtfully. He then smiled. "Darke your wave energy says that you have 92% cloud flame, 5% storm flame, 2% mist flame, and 1% rain flame. Ryo your wave energy says that you have 87% mist flame, 10% sun flame, and 3% lightening flame."

I took interest in this and asked, "So that means that the flame that I would ignite is a cloud flame and the flame my brother would ignite is a mist flame?"

"Correct." Mr. Kenji turned off the machine and turned towards them. "Ryo's flame is the mist flame, so it has the special trait of construction. His flame has low hardness and isn't a very offensive type of flame…I believe that my contraption isn't right for your type of flame." Mr. Kenji looked apologetically at Ryo. "But of course that doesn't mean you can't try lighting a flame." Mr. Kenji took out a box from his jacket pocket. Opening up the box, Ryo and I saw that there were five rings inside. Scanning the rings and taking note of the ring that was already out on the table, I noticed that one attribute was missing.

"You're missing the sky flame ring," my brother said next to me.

Mr. Kenji nodded. "Yes, but that's because that flame is an extremely rare type of flame and there aren't many sky flame rings around. Other than that, I have all the others." Mr. Kenji took out an indigo ring. "This ring isn't the best one of its kind, but it should suffice." He handed Ryo the ring and Ryo slipped it on. "That ring, as well as the others, is only a grade B ring (grade C being the worst and grade A being the best), but it's okay." Mr. Kenji picked up the cloud ring from the table and handed it to me. "Okay you two, this isn't going to be easy, but try to light your flame. Remember, keep a strong resolve and concentrate your wave energy into the ring."

Nodding, we both did as we were told. Nothing. We tried this for another hour and thirty minutes, but still there were no results. I let out an inaudible breath in frustration.

"Why is nothing happening?" Ryo asked.

"Hm," Mr. Kenji said, pondering, "Perhaps your resolve isn't formed correctly or something. It's no easy matter to light a flame and it takes time for most people to light one."

"Well isn't there also a possibility that we don't have the potential?" I asked.

"Yes, but we won't know until we keep experimenting." Clasping his hands together, Mr. Kenji called it a day and shooed us upstairs.

From that day on, we came down to Mr. Kenji's basement and practiced lighting a flame. Along with our practice, Mr. Kanji taught me the functions and uses of the goggle and scarf. From what I learned, the scarf wasn't quite an offensive weapon, but more of a defensive one. The goggles and the scarf worked hand in hand. The goggles were designed to control the scarf. Made to be used easily, the goggles were designed to follow one's eye movement and wave energy to move the scarf and change it. Another handy thing about the goggles was that it could detect movement, wave energy, and other features of a human being and his/her surroundings. As I used the goggles more and more, I became accustomed to it and used it well. Here and there Mr. Kenji would fine tune it, but other than that, the goggles were a fine creation. After a week of practicing and learning, Ryo and I were able to light our flames. But it was a rude awakening.

One day as the three of us were doing our daily routine, the alarms rang. In the middle of our practice, Mr. Kenji's head whipped up as he went upstairs to check the security system. After a few moments, he came back. "Huh, must've been an animal or something. There didn't seem to be anything unusual happening." Then looking at us, he said, "Contin—"

**BANG!**

The house shook as something exploded upstairs. Holding on to the walls, the three of us stood stock still.

"What in the world—" Mr. Kenji started, but that's all I heard. Upstairs, the sound of gunshots rang out along with Mrs. Kenji's shrill scream. Mr. Kenji cursed under his breath and stood up. Looking at the two of us, he said, "Stay here and don't move. Darke, Ryo, protect your rings and my project. I know you two haven't been able to light those flames yet, but just in case, hold onto them." With that, he turned around and cautiously headed upstairs. Before he fully disappeared though, he said, "Oh and if I don't return within the next ten minutes, take what you have and run." Then he disappeared.

Standing there in silence, Ryo and I held onto our rings. I glanced at the clock. One minute. Two minutes. Five minutes. And finally ten minutes passed. Sucking in my breath, I tapped Ryo on the shoulder and silently motioned that we had to escape. Ryo nodded in response. Slipping on my ring and putting on the goggles and the scarf, I slowly started to creep up the steps of the basement. Ryo, putting on his ring as well, followed my lead. When I finally go to the top step, I poked my head out of the doorway and checked the perimeter. _Clear._ Then I froze. It was odd how it was completely silent when a bombing and shooting had just occurred. _Perhaps Mr. and Mrs. Kenji have been murdered and…_ I shook the possibility out of my head. Even if that happened, something felt wrong. Cautiously moving forward, I constantly looked side to side, and front and back. _Which door is the quickest way out of here?_ I thought. _The front door…but there's always that possibility that someone is waiting for us there…_ Frowning, I tried to think of the least likely place that there would be a danger. _I guess the living room door will have to do._ Motioning Ryo to follow, I headed for the living room. Within five minutes of cautiously walking about, Ryo and I got to the living room. I felt relieved. "Come on Ryo let's—" My eyes widen as I sensed someone around and my goggles notified me of a presence. Without warning, a man appeared and grabbed my brother from behind. "Ryo!" Sensing another man coming, I quickly turned around and kicked the incoming man to my right. He fell down heavily with my kick, but came right back up at me. Swinging his hand towards me, I saw that he was about to punch me. Thankfully I was much faster than him and avoided the hit. Grinding my teeth, I swiftly threw punches and kicks at the man in front of me. At my last kick, the man saw through my attack, and grabbed onto my leg. This threw me off balance and I fell. Using my momentary handicap, the man threw a punch at my jaw. Knowing I couldn't avoid this hit, I clenched my teeth and took it. The punch was hard and strong, and it snapped my head to one side. No matter how many fights I had gone through, and no matter how much experience I gained from it, nothing could prevent me from fighting back when the man held up a knife to my throat.

"Stay down kid," the man snarled, "or you die."

I spat at him.

"Ah, it seems like you caught them," said a malicious voice from behind me. Unable to see who it was, I waited for him to arrive in my line of view.

"Sir, the remaining two people of this household have been apprehended. What are your orders?" the man holding me asked.

The leader, from what I deduced, gave a wicked smile. "We're going to extract information from them of course." He then turned to someone next to him and barked, "Bring the other two in." The man next to him nodded, and brought in a bloody and bruised Mr. and Mrs. Kenji.

When the two were brought in, Mr. Kenji looked at me and gave a sad smile as if to say _I'm sorry._ The man carrying them had the two adults tied, and he roughly placed them down on the floor.

"Now then, let's get started," the leader of this party said. He turned towards me and grinned maliciously. "Tell us what we ask for, and we'll let you and your _family_ go. If not…" The man lifted up a gun and pointed it at Ryo's head. "…then I start killing your family members starting with this pipsqueak until there's no one left, but you~ And then it'll be your turn." He gave me a piercing look. "So what's it gonna be?"

Looking through my goggles I calmly gazed at him. _I need to calmly think of a plan…If only I could light a cloud flame…_ Mr. Kenji, sensing my planning, subtly shook his head. I knew what I was doing was reckless, but I had to try when a possibility arose. For now I backed down and answered the man back. "Fine."

The man smiled like a wolf. "Good. Then the question for you is: Where are your family's bases? Also, tell me all the coordinated and passwords to each base."

_What…_I looked at then a bit skeptically. _What are they talking about?_ The man continued to look at me expectantly. "Well?" he said.

"I don't know." Definitely not what the enemy wanted to hear, but I really had no idea what they were talking about. The man in front of me scowled.

"Don't even try to pull that. I know you know where it is. I don't have time to play games with you, so either hurry up and tell me or say farewell to this little brat." The gun clicked in the man's hand as he prepared to shoot Ryo if needed.

Grinding my teeth, I let out a breath and repeated, "I said I don't know. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Huh, this kid is screwing with us." The man let out a gunshot. Freezing, I looked at Ryo, but was relieved to see that the man shot at the floor inches away from the feet of my little brother. Ryo was silent and emotionless in the man's grip, but after the gunshot rang, his eyes widened.

"Now tell me," the man with the gun said, "Where are the bases?"

I again repeated, "I. Don't. Know."

The man's gaze got dangerously dark. Without warning, he ran at Ryo and flipped out a switchblade. Swiftly striking, the man swiped at Ryo face. A deep red gash appeared on Ryo's cheek. Observing helplessly, I looked at Ryo. _Why can't I do anything? I need to save my brother. I need my flame to ignite. NOW!_ Suddenly, on Darke's right middle finger, a purple flame formed on his ring.

"What the—" the man holding him down yelped momentarily and loosened his grip. That opening was all Darke needed. Acting swiftly, Darke flipped his body around, and used the floor to steady himself. The man who had held him down came to put him down again, but this time Darke was ready. Putting all he had into a kick, Darke kicked the side of the man's head and knocked him out. Without delaying his turned around and quickly scanned for Ryo. "…?" _Where did Ryo…_ A gun clicked from behind. Slowly turning around, Darke faced the leader.

"An amateur fighter," the leader said with a smirk, "isn't going to defeat me." He then glanced around the room to see where Ryo was. Nowhere to be seen, Ryo was completely missing from the room. "Tch. I don't know what trick you or that pipsqueak pulled off, but that isn't going to change your fate." The man prepared to pull the trigger when a sound came from his right. He turned to see what happened. On the floor of the room, unconscious, was the man who had brought Mr. and Mrs. Kenji in. The man with the gun glanced at his final subordinate and nodded towards Mr. and Mrs. Kenji. Just up until moments ago, the subordinate had been holding onto Ryo, but now that Ryo was no longer around, he followed his leader's order and ran at Mr. and Mrs. Kenji to put them down once more. Mr. Kenji took care of him though. With one swift punch and kick, the man was down and out.

"Darke!" Mr. Kenji urgently shouted at me.

"Ah ah aaaah~" The final person, the leader, shook his head mockingly. "Mr. and Mrs. Kenji, unless you want this boy dead, I suggest you slowly back up and lay on the floor with your hands behind your head. Behind me, Mr. and Mrs. Kenji were silent. Then slowly, the two of them started to back down.

"Good~" The man said, smiling. _Flicker._

_Hm?_ I narrowed my eyes to something that seemed to flicker right behind him. What was that? Immediately, my goggles seemed to pick up on some kind of flame activity. Following my eyes to the area behind the man's back, I saw…Ryo faintly appear and disappear with his finger to his lips. _I see…_ Ryo seemed to have awakened his flame around the same time that I did. That explained how he suddenly disappeared. Ryo must've been able to use an illusion. _Impressive._ I momentarily mused. Unfortunately from the looks of it, Ryo's current illusion didn't seem to be so steady. I quickly glanced at the man to see if he had noticed Ryo yet. The man focused on me and the Kenjis. _Good._ Looking at Ryo one more time, I nodded. One. Two. Three. Ryo suddenly appeared before the surprised leader's eye. Without enough time to react, Ryo quickly smacked the gun out of the man's hand and kicked it away.

"Why you little—" The man went for my brother.

"Che." I ran at the man and landed a blow on him. To his credit, he blocked it and retaliated. Thankfully, that was when Mr. and Mrs. Kenji appeared to help me. Though the man was more experienced combat wise, the Kenjis, Ryo, and I were able to put him down through numbers. Mr. Kenji then heavily kicked the man and knocked him unconscious. We all took a breath and let it out.

"What an uneventful day," Mrs. Kenji said wryly.

"Indeed," Mr. Kenji replied. The two of them took a moment and looked at us both. Then exchanging glances, they shrugged and smiled at us. "We're very proud of you two. Thank you for saving us." Not sure how to reply to that, Ryo and I remained silent. Mr. Kenji then gave me a lopsided grin as he cocked his head and looked at me. "Huh, the goggle and scarf really suites you. Keep it and use it well." I was surprised. Next to Mr. Kenji, Mrs. Kenji laughed. "Don't be so surprised Darke, my husband made that so that it could be perfected. Now that you're the one wielding it, it's perfect." She gave me a smile. Then her smile faded to a sad expression. "I'm sorry for putting you boys into this kind of danger. It seems that we can't guarantee your safety here." She looked up at us. "I hate to say this, but it seems as though we'll have to send you back to the orphanage so that a better family can take care of you. I'm sorry." The two Kenjis looked down.

For a moment it was silent. "It's fine," I answered finally, breaking the silence. You guys can send us back. I understand your reasoning quite fairly." Turning away, I kept a steady demeanor. "Anyways, I'll be working on this new flame thing with Ryo. One day we'll perfect it and come show you how good we are." I waved my hand dismissively at them. "So it's fine." The two Kenjis looked at each other and smiled.

"Well, I guess that's that then," Mrs. Kenji said. "Looks like we'll have to relocate and live somewhere else. Maybe we'll return to Japan…?"

Mr. Kenji looked around at the mess in his house. "Yes, but before we do that, we'll have to fix up the house, reassure the neighbors, and call the Vindice…" Mr. Kenji's voice trailed off. Looking at us once more, Mr. Kenji said, "I'm going to call Ms. Kelly right away to pick you up." Taking out his cell phone he phoned our social worker. Within the next thirty minutes Ms. Kelly arrived and picked us up.

"Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Kenji for taking care of these two," Ms. Kelly said.

"It was our pleasure," Mrs. Kenji kindly answered. Giving us a nod, the two waved us off.

Inside the car and finally away from the two Kenjis, Ms. Kelly sighed. "Here we go again. What happened this time?" The two of us remained silent and did not reply. Ms Kelly shook her head. "I swear you two…hm? Darke, what's with the goggles and the scarf?"

I looked out the window. "Just a gift from the Kenjis," I answered vaguely.

"Oh how nice~"

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><p><em><strong>Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep<strong>_

The sound of the school bell ringing to signal the end of the period/lunch break brought me back to reality. Getting off the tree, I walked back into the school.

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><p><strong>Hm~ So how was it? This took me a while to type, but I was in the <em>zone<em> while writing it, so it ended up not being as difficult to write~^^ Please Review~!**


	19. Ryo's School Days

**A.N.-**** Ah, it's been a while since I've updated. Gomen, gomen~ /hit. Okay *crouches down* Gomenasai... Anyways, this is the last chapter before I start a new arc. As you know, KHR did it's first 20 episodes of derp and stuff and started with the Mukuro arc at around 20, so I'm doing that too o3o So for now enjoy~**

**Disclaimer:**** KHR is not mine.**

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><p><strong>Ryo's P.O.V.<strong>

"Ryo-kun~!" a voice shouted from below me. Currently, it was lunch time and I was sitting on a branch of a sakura tree. I looked down to see who it was that called me and saw that it was that girl from my class.

"Ryo-kun! Come on, lunch time is almost over. Let's go inside before the others do," said the girl below me. Now what was her name again? Ayaka? Asuka? Not quite remembering her name, I just shrugged and slowly came down from the sakura tree.

"Geez Ryo-kun, how am I supposed to find you and escort you to class if you're hiding up in a tree like that," the girl grumbled. "You're hair's pink, so hiding in a sakura tree makes it harder for me to find you!" The girl went on and chastised me for my actions while I, on the other hand, listened to her in silence. Slowly, we started to walk towards the school doors. Since the time that I came into this school till now, this girl had been my 'escort' to every one of my classes. I don't understand why she is still my 'escort' (since it's been nine months since my arrival to this school), but I don't object it. By now I know Ichimu Elemenetary school top to bottom, but my so called 'escort' still explains every room and floor to me as if I was still new to this school. Next to me the girl sighed.

"Are you even listening to me Ryo-kun?" she asked. I nodded in reply. "You could at least respond back or something to show that you're really listening," she grumbled. "Sometimes I think you're silent because you're not listening to me." I just shrugged. For a few moments we walked in silence until the girl beside me started to talk again.

"Hey Ryo-kun, if you think about it, school's ending soon and in another three months we'll be in Ichimu Middle school..." _So?_ "Isn't that weird?" she asked me. I shrugged and shook my head. "Usually schools in Japan start around April and end in March with a couple of breaks like Golden Week, spring break, winter break, and a six week summer break…but look, here we are at the end of our sixth grade year when other schools in Japan have just started." She gave me a grin. "I don't mind that much, but it's a little new to me." She then looked away.

The schools in Ichimu Gaiku were pretty much international schools for kids who came from outside the country (from what I learned in the past nine months here). Its school system was made to be suitable especially to those who came from the Americas or Europe. Though most of the students here were originally from this town, we still had some Japanese students who grew up in a different country and moved here, or some Japanese students who have gone away for an abroad study and have come back. The remainder of us was those who were not Japanese, but came to study here. "Hey Ryo-kun, remember the first time that you and I met?" the girl questioned me. _Where did _that_ come from?_ I nodded with a half shrug.

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><p><strong>-FLASHBACK-<strong>

"Class, today we have a new student who transferred into Ichimu Elementary school named Ryo. I hope that you all get along with him." The teacher who stood next to me introduced me to my homeroom class. Scanning my homeroom class and my fellow classmates, I saw that they were whispering to each other as they stole some glances at me. "Ryo-kun," the teacher said turning her attention on me, "please sit next to Atsuko in the second row. She is the president of the Welcoming Committee, and she will be your escort and guide until you get familiar with Ichimu Elementary school." Nodding in reply to the teacher, I walked over to the desk next to Atsuko and sat down.

"Hey Ryo-kun, though you already know, I'm Atsuko and I'll be your escort/guide. Nice to meet you." The girl smiled at me. Atsuko was a slim girl just around my height with wavy brown hair that was tied in low pig tails. In reply to Atsuko's greeting, I nodded. Then I looked away. Class proceeded and the teacher began with her lesson. All throughout class, I had Atsuko talk to me here and there, and to everything that she said I always gave a nod. Soon class came to an end and it was the break between this class and the next. During the break in which we waited for our next teacher to come, Atsuko and two other people came and introduced themselves to me.

"Yo! Ryo-kun, I'm Daisuke. Nice to meet 'cha," said the boy to Atsuko's right. Daisuke was a tall boy with messy brown hair that stuck out in several place.

"Hi Ryo-kun, I'm Rina," said the girl to Atsuko's left. Rina was a shy-looking girl with long black hair that was tied in a single braid.

When the two greeted me, I nodded in reply and remained silent. The three exchanged glances and remained silent until Atsuko elbowed Daisuke in the ribs.

"Ow—er Ryo-kun…so how's Ichimu Elementary school so far? Do you like it?" Daisuke asked rubbing his ribs. I nodded.

"Ah—um our homeroom teacher is pretty nice huh Ryo-kun?" Rina said shyly. I nodded again.

In front of me Atsuko sighed. "Oi Ryo-kun—"

"Students, please take a seat. Class will now be commencing," said the teacher to our next class, interrupting Atsuko mid-sentence. Atsuko motioned for Daisuke and Rina to take a seat and quickly whispered to me, "Talk to you at lunch." With that, classes went on without any disturbances.

"Oi, Daisuke, what the heck was that?" Atsuko whispered to Daisuke, so that she wouldn't draw the teacher's attention.

"What?"

"Your incredibly awkward conversation with Ryo-kun!"

"Um…"

Atsuko turned to Rina as well. "You too Rina! If you guys can't start a good conversation with a newcomer, then what do you think people will think of the _Welcoming_ Committee!"

"Sorry," Rina apologized.

"Well, it's not easy trying to talk to a guy like that," Daisuke said. "He doesn't talk or really respond to anything we say to him."

"Maybe he's really shy," Rina said.

"Maybe," Daisuke said. "But don't you think it's a bit strange that he doesn't speak or respond to what we say?" Daisuke stole a glance at Ryo. "Maybe he's like deaf or mute or special or something…"

Atsuko kicked Daisuke from beneath her desk. "Don't say stuff like that. I heard Ryo-kun speak before. He answered the math question that the teacher asked him just moments ago. Plus, how can he be deaf if answered?" Atsuko rolled her eyes at Daisuke.

"Okay, okay, I get it. My bad. Maybe he's just hard of hearing or…" Daisuke's voice trailed away with Atsuko's sharp gaze.

"Anyways, Daisuke, during lunch you should go and talk to Ryo-kun. After all you're a guy and it'll probably be easier for him to talk to you," Aysuko said.

"'kay," Daisuke mumbled.

Lunch time came quickly. Sitting outside on a bench, I ate the food that I got from the cafeteria. Around me were various students of all ages and grades; some with their own lunches and others with the cafeteria food.

"Oi~ Ryo-kun," said a voice behind me. Turning around, I noticed that it was the same guy who introduced himself to me before. _Ah what was his name again…?_ Acknowledging him with a glance, I turned away and began to eat my lunch.

"Ryo. Kun. Did. You. Hear. Me?" Daisuke enunciated each word slowly and carefully to me. Turning around again I nodded. Then I turned away once more. Behind me I heard the boy let out a sigh. "So. Ryo. Kun. What. Do. You. Have. For. Lunch. To-day?" Wondering what was with this boy, I showed my lunch to him without turning around. "AH. SO. YOU'RE. HAVING. BOILED. GYOZA. WITH. A. DAIKON. RADISH. SALAD. I. SEE." He spoke to me loudly and slowly. "THAT'S. GOOD. STUFF." The boy behind then decided to walk up in front of me. "WELL. THEN. I—"

"Korrrrraaaaa!" A girl with wavy brown hair tied in pig-tails came at the boy in front of me an attacked him. She was the girl that I sat next to in class today. _Ah what was her name again? I seem to have forgotten…_ "Oi baka! What was that! I told you to _talk_ with Ryo-kun, not fool around! I can't bear to stand by and watch any longer." The girl scowled deeply at the boy. Behind her was the girl that I met earlier in class today. Her name wasn't very clear in my mind either.

"Atsuko-chan, um I think that was a bit harsh…" the girl's voice trailed away.

"It's fine Rina," the girl Atsuko said, "this idiot won't die from that."

"Oi, oi, Atsuko, that hurt though," said the boy rubbing his back.

"Well Daisuke, you wouldn't be in pain if you did as I told you," Atsuko snapped. "Didn't we already go over the fact that Ryo-kun was not deaf, mute, special, or hard of hearing? The way you were speaking to him was as if you believed he was all four of the above! That's rude and not proper. Anyways, your performance was idiotic in itself. You spoke so loudly and stupidly that you disturbed the peace of the other students trying to eat their own lunches! Also, you yourself looked mentally troubled, so stop. You're seriously making the Welcoming Committee look bad, Daisuke!" With that Atsuko huffed and stopped talking.

I looked around and noticed all the students who looked at us strangely. The presence of these three seemed to have attracted much attention. Speaking in a flat, monotone voice, I spoke to the three. "Excuse me Atsuko-chan, Rina-chan, and Daisuke-kun, I think you're the ones causing the disturbance right now, no offense. Also just to clarify, I am not deaf, mute, special, or hard of hearing. I am a perfectly normal boy who dislikes attracting attention to himself and enjoys the peace of his solitude at times. Also I believe the Welcoming Committee would gain a lot of popularity if it helped students around rather than scaring, hunting, and stalking them to the ends of the earth." The three in front of me blanched at my short rant. Before they could trouble me anymore, I nodded and moved away.

Atsuko was the first to recover. "Well then. That was interesting." She turned to me and gave me a grin. In compensation for us bothering you, I'll make sure to help and escort wherever you go for the rest of the school year. It's a promise!"

_I rather you not…_ I thought.

**-END OF FLASHBACK-**

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><p><em>Hm I remember her name now I guess.<em> Ahead of me, Atsuko threw me a look with a smile. Blankly staring ahead, I followed her back into the school.

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><p><strong>So tell me what chu thought of the last chapter of the first twenty o3o Review~<strong>


	20. New Arc: Unknown Enemy

**A.N.- Sorry for the belated chapter and the delays readers! Welp, I finally got the chapter done, and it's the first to a new arc :3 Thanks for the wait, and with no further ado, here's chapter 20~**

_**Disclaimer-**_** I do not own KHR...**

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><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

"Let me out of here," Kaede moaned for the millionth time next to me. Turning my head towards Kaede, I gave him a look. Chin on his arms and ear buds in his ears, Kaede stared straight on ahead without really seeing. His reddish-orange hair stuck to his forehead as the heat of June brought forth a sheen of sweat. "It's so hot…" Kaede moaned once again as the teacher lectured. I sighed. Here I was in the last days of school, listening to a teacher in a hot stuffy room with a moaning Kaede besides me. Once again I cursed the school's illogical budget management and its terrible ventilation and temperature control system. "It's so boring here," Kaede moaned. Trying my best to ignore Kaede, I looked away, waiting for Kaede's moaning to repeat once more. This repetition of "Let me out of here", "It's so hot", and "It's so boring here" had been going on for a while now. Surprisingly though, he said something different next.

"That's it; I'm ditching." Blinking in surprise, I looked back at Kaede who now sat up straight with his hand in the air.

"Yes Kaede-kun?" said the teacher.

"May I go use the bathroom?" Kaede asked with a grin. "It's urgent."

"Go ahead," the teacher answered, "just be quick with it." Then turning back to the board, the teacher continued his lecture.

"Kekeke~" Kaede snickered. Then he turned to me and whispered, "Do you wanna ditch with me?" To this I raised an eyebrow and shook my head. Kaede shrugged. "Your loss." Then turning to Naboru he whispered, "Bring my bag to my house for me after school 'kay? Thanks." With that, Kaede gave us both a wink and walked out of the classroom.

I turned to Naboru. "Um shouldn't you stop him…?"

Naboru shrugged. "Like he'd listen?"

"True," I admitted. I sighed. _Lucky…I wish I had the guts to cut class…but…_ Groaning, I leaned my chin on my hand and looked up ahead in boredom. Five minutes passed by in class ever so slowly without the return of Kaede. _Maybe I should've taken up Kaede's offer and ditched with him…_ Tempted to do just that, I was contemplating the pros and cons of cutting class when a student behind me said, "Hey, isn't that Kaede-kun out there on the field?" Immediately with that comment, several students leaned to the side on their desks to peek out the windows.

"Oh yeah…it does look like Kaede-kun! I can't see that well from this angle, but it does look a lot like him," said another student in my class.

"Hmph, of course a troublemaker like him would think of cutting class," said a snobby voice behind which I identified as Yuri's.

"Well Kaede _has_ been in the bathroom for a while now," the teacher said. "Perhaps—"

"Sensei!" said a voice interrupting the teacher. It was Hiroto. "Sorry to rudely interrupt you, but as the president of the Disciplinary Committee, I cannot look over this breach of rules. May I have permission to bring him back?" Hiroto asked, icy blue eyes piercing the teacher.

"I guess so…though just giving him detention tomorrow wouldn't be all that hard either, but if you feel that obligated to do your job then you may Hiroto-kun."

"Thank you sensei," Hiroto said with a bow. Then standing up he quickly went over to the window. "Excuse me for using this exit, but I must use it in order to reach Kaede-kun in time." With that, Hiroto quickly jumped out the window and ran for Kaede.

In front of the classroom the teacher sighed. "If this wasn't the first floor I wouldn't have allowed that…" he mumbled to himself. Then looking at the class, he clapped his hands to get the class' attention. "Class, settle down! I know some…circumstances have arisen, but we still have finals week coming up, so please pay attention. After a few minutes of grumbling and sighing, everyone settled down and the class continued.

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><p>"Kaede-kun stop right there!" Hiroto yelled as he chased Kaede around the shopping district, "You broke school rules and now you're under charge of intentionally cutting classes." Ahead Kaede kept running.<p>

"Che," Kaede muttered under his breath. Then turning his head to glance at Hiroto he yelled, "Catch me if you can Hiroto-chan~!" He stuck out his tongue and ran faster.

"Tsk." Hiroto grimaced and ran at Kaede. For a good ten minutes, Hiroto chased after Kaede like he would chase a kid in a game of tag. Then finally, Hiroto caught up to Kaede when he turned a corner. _It's now or never._ Putting a burst of speed into his run, Hiroto got right behind Kaede, jumped up, and took him down with a kick.

"Yowch!" Kaede yelped as he was kicked from behind. Falling forward, Kaede felt Hiroto's weight on his back.

"Hmph, finally I caught you," Hiroto said with a huff. Holding Kaede down with his own weight, Hiroto leaned down to talk. "We can do this the nice, easy, and civilized way, or the extremely painful and hard way. Pick wisely."

"Do I get a cookie for picking the right answer?" Kaede said with a lopsided grin.

"No."

Kaede shrugged. "Well I don't feel like getting more bruises so I guess the nice, easy, and civilized way it is~" _Hmph, the moment he lets me go, I'm gonna run for it again~_ Kaede gave Hiroto and innocent smile.

Hiroto, not buying it, gave Kaede a suspicious look and warned, "You better not run for it, or else I'm knocking you out cold and dragging you to school."

"Hai, hai~"

Slowly getting off Kaede, Hiroto held on to Kaede's arm as he lifted him up.

_Now!_ The moment Kaede got on his feet; he kicked the back of Hiroto's shins and brought him to his knees. "Sayonara Hiroto-chan~" he said with a mocking salute, and ran off.

"Hey!" Hiroto yelled as he got to his feet. Then the chase began again. Up and down the blocks they ran, taking alley ways and short-cuts. Soon enough though, Kaede entered a busy area, and Hiroto lost track of him. _Dammit…looks like I'll have to search for him._ Scanning the crowd, Hiroto looked for Kaede. _Where could he be…_ Hiroto kept looking around when he spotted a flash of reddish-orange hair that ran off to his left. _Kaede!_ Navigating his way through the crowd, Hiroto got out and ran towards the direction he saw Kaede go to. _He should be around here somewhere…_ Trying to envision the path Kaede took, Hiroto entered a quieter street and heard some voices.

"Oi you know who I'm talking about," said a voice up ahead, "just tell me where she lives and I'll let you go without any injuries."

"Ahaha sorry stalker-san, I can't tell you that~ That way of picking up girls is a bit creepy and weird. I prefer being upfront to girls anyways." This was Kaede's voice.

Hiroto went after the direction he heard Kaede's voice.

"Well anyways, bye~" Hiroto heard Kaede walking towards him. Then he heard the unknown voice sigh. "Looks like I have to do it." Still heading towards Kaede's direction, Hiroto turned a corner just in time to see a hooded boy deal a heavy blow on Kaede's stomach and then kick him down to the ground. On the ground, Kaede groaned in pain.

"Kaede!" Hiroto yelled. Looking up at Hiroto, Kaede gave a grimace.

"Who's this here? Is he a friend of yours?" said the hooded boy. Up close Hiroto noticed that he looked like a high schooler. He had jet black hair with bangs that were a bit too long as well as dark eyes. With his dark gray hoodie and his black jeans, his appearance seemed even darker. _Is he perhaps a student from Ichimu High?_

Kneeling down next to Kaede, Hiroto helped him to his feet. Then he looked at the hooded boy. "Who are you? Are you a student of Ichimu High?" The boy didn't answer. "If you are, just know that I am the president of the Disciplinary Committee of Ichimu Middle school and that I will promptly report to your school about your acts." The hooded boy laughed.

"Reporting me to the school? Disciplinary Committee? Like that means anything to me!" The hooded boy walked towards Hiroto and Kaede, who took up a defensive stance. "I'm looking for someone…or some people I should say, and I won't be leaving till you tell me something about them." The boy took out eight pictures and spread them out like a fan. "Know any of these people, boys?"

Hiroto scanned the faces on the picture and immediately recognized several of them. He glanced at Kaede who stared back at him and shook his head. Turning back to the hooded boy, Hiroto said, "It is not under my jurisdiction to give out any names or information regarding the students of Ichimu Elementary, Middle, or High. Now _excuse me._" But before Hiroto could take a step he was kicked in the stomach. Having the wind knocked out of him, Hiroto stood there glaring at the hooded boy.

"Now, now, what did I say before? I said I wouldn't leave until you told me something about these people. That means no running for you two~" The hooded boy turned to Kaede. "Oi you. I know you know who some of these people are. I can't tell if your friend over there does, but since you two seem to go to the same school I guess he does too. But for now I know that you definitely know these people and/or their whereabouts. Spit it out."

Kaede grimaced. Then putting on an air of false cheerfulness, Kaede said, "Aw stalker-san, we don't know anything so let us go ok? Perhaps you'll meet them after school or something and then you can ask them ou—" Kaede was roughly shoved to the ground and punched hard in the face.

"Don't joke around with me," the hooded boy said. "Now I'll ask again. What do you know about these people?" Below him, Kaede coughed and said, "I don't think picking up girls will ever be your forte." The hooded boy looked down at Kaede darkly.

_Kaede you idiot._ Hiroto thought. _I need to get help._ A few paces away, the hooded boy roughly picked up Kaede by the shirt collar and shoved him to a wall. Concentrated on getting help, Hiroto didn't see what was happening until he heard Kaede yell out in pain. Snapping his head back to Kaede, he saw that Kaede's left arm was bent at a strange angle. Gritting his teeth, Hiroto took the chance to attack the hooded boy. Having been in the martial arts club, Hiroto had a bit of experience in hand to hand combat. Running at the hooded figure, Hiroto anticipated his opponent's movements and prepared to land a blow on the hooded figure's face. Surprisingly enough, the hooded figure reacted quickly and blocked Hiroto's punch. Then preparing for a counterattack, the hooded figure swept his legs out to unbalance Hiroto, but Hiroto saw this coming and avoided such calamity. The hooded figure narrowed his eyes on Hiroto as he assessed Hiroto's abilities. Hiroto did the same. Then the two clashed again. In the midst of combat, Hiroto held his ground pretty well, but Hiroto could see that the hooded boy was the better fighter. _This hooded guy seems to have a lot of experience in fighting_ Hiroto thought. _His form is amazing as well as his speed and strength. His physique is better too._ As the fighting continued, Hiroto felt his stamina start to drop a bit and warily noted that his opponent was doing just fine. Taking a bit of a more defensive stance now, Hiroto did his best to deflect and counterattack whatever attacks the hooded boy threw at him. Noticing this change in stance as well, the hooded boy rained down blow after blow on Hiroto mercilessly. Just as Hiroto felt that he couldn't fight any longer, he saw a patrol car out the corner of his eye. _This is my chance_. Feinting to the left, but going right instead, Hiroto managed to get away from the hooded boy, and he ran towards the patrol car waving his arms and yelling "Police!" From inside his car, the police officer saw Hiroto calling for his attention and drove over to him.

"Tch, I need to keep a low profile," muttered the hooded boy distastefully. Stepping away from the scene, the hooded boy slowly walked towards an alley way saying, "You got lucky this time brats" and disappeared.

"Officer!" Hiroto said, "Please come this way!" The police officer followed Hiroto to the place that Kaede was. On the ground, Kaede was groaning.

"What happened here kid?" the officer asked Hiroto. Hiroto quickly went over what had happened. Against his better judgment, he left out who he saw in the eight pictures. The officer listened to Hiroto's story and quickly called for an ambulance. When the ambulance came, Kaede was quickly put into the vehicle and driven away to the hospital. "Are you sure you don't need the ambulance too kid?" the officer asked Hiroto.

"Yes sir," Hiroto replied. "But I do believe that I need a ride back to Ichimu Middle school." The police officer agreed to Hiroto's request. The two got inside and drove towards school. Still thinking back to the pictures, Hiroto grimly looked out the window. _What could that hooded boy possible want with Esa-chan and the others…?_

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

It was the last ten minutes of the last period of the day: Band. As I sat there in ready position with my flute propped upright on my right knee, I briefly heard the sound of police sirens coming outside the band room window. I momentarily wondered what was going on, but put that thought aside as the conductor lifted his hands to begin another song.

* * *

><p><strong>Jasmine's P.O.V.<strong>

Sirens. To be more exact, police sirens. That's what our class heard in the last ten minutes of Japanese class. Curious to see what was going on outside, I leaned to the right and took a peek out the second floor window. Outside I saw a single police car parked by the main entrance and two figures running into the building. Taking a closer look, I saw that the two figures were Hiroto and a police officer. I wondered what was going on, after all, Hiroto had been missing for several classes now, plus he had a police officer with him. I also noted that Kaede was not with him. Thankfully I didn't have to wonder too long. Within minutes of entering the building, Hiroto arrived at our classroom door and gave a quick apology to the teacher. Then briskly walking to his seat, he sat down. Immediately he was bombarded with questions like: "Where have you been?" and "Did you catch Kaede?" and "Why is there a police here?" and so on.

"Settle down class. I'm sure that there will be an announcement of some sorts about these events, but for now let's get back to the lesson," the teacher said. Grudgingly, the class conceded and settled down. It was obvious from the tension in the air though, that the moment class ended, Hiroto was going to get mauled with questions. So to avoid that from happening, Hiroto raised his hands and informed the teacher that he needed to be relieved from class at least three minutes early to report to the principal and write a report. The teacher gave his consent and the lesson went on.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

_Now where did they go?_ I stood by the first floor's staircase as the wave of students walked down the stairs and out the school doors. This place by the staircase was where I usually met or waited for Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina. Today, I happened to be the first one here.

"Hey Anrya, where are the others?" Selina approached me from behind.

"Hm I don't know," I replied.

"Aren't they usually here before us?"

"Yeah, but I guess they're a bit delayed today." Leaning on the wall, I waited with Selina for Esa and the others to come. Then an announcement on the loudspeakers came on briefly.

"_Can the following students please report to the Disciplinary Committee's office: Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, Anrya, and Selina. Thank you."_

I exchanged glances with Selina. "Well at least now we know where they will be."

At the Disciplinary Committee's office, I met Esa and the others. Sitting behind a desk and the only committee member in the room, Hiroto seemed to be writing out a report of some sorts. When all five of us were gathered, he put down his pen and looked up to us.

"Sooooo why are we here Hiroto-kun?" Crystal said, cocking her head to one side.

"You're all here because I'm going to tell you about the incident that occurred while I was gone and to ask you several questions," Hiroto replied.

"Ooookay then…" Crystal said with a shrug.

"Hm I'd like to know this," Jasmine said.

"Same," Esa agreed. Then asked, "So where's Kaede and what happened to him? I didn't see him come back with you…"

"I sent him to the hospital," Hiroto replied flatly.

Esa's eyes widened. "Woah, isn't that a bit harsh Hiroto? I mean I know Kaede cut class and all, but you didn't have to hurt him that badly…"

A puzzled looked crossed Hiroto's face. Then realizing that what he said must've been interpreted incorrectly he said, "It wasn't me who hurt Kaede, but rather a hooded boy that we met in the streets. Kaede got injured from a fight we had with the hooded boy and so I sent him to the hospital."

"Oh."

"Wait a moment," I cut in. "Sorry, but Selina I haven't heard anything about this so anyone care to fill us in on this business?" Beside me, Esa nodded and turned to the both of us and filled us in on what happened with Kaede. "Ah ok," I said after the explanation. Now understanding, I let Hiroto continue on.

"Now about that incident with the hooded boy and all…" Hiroto started to tell us about how he chased after Kaede, met the hooded boy, and got into a fight. "…so you see, we now have an issue."

"So that's why you were gone from school so long," Esa slowly said, "but I don't get what this has to do with us…I'm pretty sure you're not telling us this just for gossip sake."

"No I did not call you five over just to gossip with you, but yes this does have to do with you five," Hiroto's icy blue eyes stared straight into our eyes. "On those eight pictures that I mentioned about, I saw the five of you, plus three other boys."

At this we all exchanged glances. "Why does that person have pictures of us?" I asked, creeped out by this information.

"That's what I'd like to know," Hiroto said grimly. "I didn't report this to the police or the principal just in case word spreads and things happen, but if this hooded boy is threatening in any manner to you or to our student body, then I'd have to report this." Hiroto continued to gaze at us calmly. "It is the Disciplinary Committee's job to ensure the safety of the school and the student body, as well as enforce the rules. I want to make sure that nothing like this happens again, so I want to solve it as quickly as possible without an audience." I nervously looked at Hiroto with worry. "Do any of you have any idea why this hooded boy is looking for you? Don't keep any information back since that'll only be to your disadvantage. Are any of you familiar with such person? Did any of you have a dispute with this person? Is this matter related to drugs or gangs?" To all of Hiroto's questions we all answered 'no'. Hiroto sighed. "Well I guess we'll leave this to the police then…Hopefully they'll catch this hooded boy and get all the answers from him." Hiroto stood from his seat. "Well that's it guys. Sorry for calling you here. On your way to and from school, watch out for strangers and stay safe. This person may be a high schooler, but nonetheless he can still pose as a threat. I don't know if he's of Ichimu High, but from the way he looked and talked about you guys, it doesn't seem so."

Giving Hiroto a reassuring smile I said, "Yes mom." Then I turned to leave with the others, but stopped and asked, "Just want to know, but who were the other three in the picture?"

Hiroto looked at me and answered, "One of them was that high schooler Rai that Kaede spoke of, and the other two…I'm not so sure. One was definitely a high schooler like Rai, and the other…looked like an elementary schooler, but he could've been a middle schooler…"

"Can you give me a brief description of the other two?" I asked, feeling that I already knew who they were.

"Hm…the high schooler was a dark haired boy wearing goggles and a purple scarf, and the other kid was a pink haired boy..." Hiroto noticed my grim face as he told me the description. "Do you know these two?"

I nodded, my suspicions confirmed. "I know those two…and Rai. I don't think they have anything to do with that person either though…"

Hiroto looked critically at me as he pondered. "Hm, somehow this all connects, but I'm not sure how…" Shaking his head, Hiroto looked at me wearily and said, "Well stay safe and goodbye. I have a report to finish…"

I gave a brief 'goodbye' and left the office. I jogged down the hallway to catch up with the others who were talking about the news that we heard. Thinking about the situation and putting the facts together, I felt a sense of foreboding. _Who is this person and what does he want with us?_

* * *

><p>Outside, we met up with Rai, Darke, and Ryo at the designated place we always met at after school.<p>

"Hey where were you guys and what took so long?" Rai asked. "Darke-kun, Ryo-kun, and I have been waiting forever."

"Ah sorry," I said apologetically, "Something came up and…" I glanced at my phone and checked the time. "…we'll fill you guys in along the way."

"Ok," Rai said cheerily. Then turning to Esa he said, "Esa-chan~ You didn't pick up my call when I called you."

Esa glanced at Rai and said, "I keep my phone off and in my locker during school hours."

"Yeah, but this was after class." Esa shrugged.

Starting to walk away from school I said, "We'll fill you guys in now. How 'bout you start off for us Esa since you were with Kaede when he planned to cut." Esa nodded.

Rai moved close beside Esa and looped his arm through hers. "Hai Esa-chan, tell us~" Esa unlinked her arms from Rai's and began telling the story. After Esa told her part about Kaede, I took her place and explained the events that Hiroto told us about. Here and there the others added in some comments and concerns as well. At the end, I brought up my concerns too, and as we all walked towards home, we each gave out our own theories on the hooded boy and his relation to us.

* * *

><p><strong>Esa's P.O.V.<strong>

It was the next day. Sitting in my first period class, Math, I nervously awaited Kaede's arrival. Just like in almost every single class, Kaede sat next to me, but today that seat beside me was empty. Glancing up at the clock, I noted that class was to start in three minutes and started to tap my pen on the desk. _Where is he?_ In the row in front of me, I saw a figure on the right-hand side of the room turn towards me. It was Jasmine. Raising an eyebrow, I saw that she gave me a look that indicated that I should calm down. So I did. Taking a breath, I rationally thought through what we talked about yesterday. _That's right, Kaede was hospitalized, so he may not come to school today…nothing to worry about. Hiroto told us that Kaede wasn't in critical condition or anything, so he should be fine._ The bell rang to indicate the start of class. The math teacher walked into the class and quickly took attendance. After calling out several names, the teacher got to Kaede's name.

"Kaede?" the teacher called out. Looking at the empty seat beside me, the teacher noted that Kaede was not present. The class broke out into whisper. Here and there I heard the word 'hospitalized' and 'Kaede'. By now the whole school knew about the incident that Kaede and Hiroto went through yesterday…at least the version that Hiroto told the principal. The teacher, ignoring all the whispers, continued to call out the other names when—

"Good morning sensei~" Kaede walked into the room with a cast on his left arm. Giving the class a mock bow, he said, "I know you all love me and missed me, so here I am, back~" Kaede grinned and the whole class laughed. Relieved to see that Kaede was ok, I relaxed. _Geez, Kaede's his normal self. Guess there was nothing to get worked up about._

"Hey Esa-chan," Kaede said to me with a grin as he walked to the seat next to me. Sitting down he sighed and took out his math book. "Back in hell again," he joked. I rolled my eyes, but agreed with him.

"So how's your arm?" I asked Kaede. Kaede shrugged in response to signify that nothing was amiss. Satisfied with the response, I smiled and took out my books. Then I noticed something different about Kaede. Besides the cast on his left arm and several cuts and bruises here and there, Kaede had a different attire on. Unlike the usual uniform that everyone wore in school, today Kaede wore a sleeveless white shirt and school pants. Up in the row in front of me sitting to the left of Jasmine, Hiroto seemed to have noticed Kaede's attire as well and turned to give Kaede a disapproving look. Next to me, Kaede pretended not to notice Hiroto's look and hid a grin.

"Ugh it's so hot in here," said an annoyingly familiar voice stating the obvious. Turning my head slightly to the speaker, who I knew was Yuri, I said, "We know Yuri. It's going to get hotter later on in the day, so do us a favor and be quiet."

Behind me, Yuri bristled. "Hmph, I'm just saying what we're all thinking." I ignored her. Next to me though, Kaede had a mischievous grin on.

"Oh I'm sorry," said Kaede turning around to face Yuri, "the extra skin I'm exposing today seems to have elevated the heat and tension in this room. I'll try to manage it, but I don't know if I can." Then giving a pause, Kaede put on a mock-serious face on and said, "Do I turn you on?"

From behind Yuri looked slightly flustered and muttered, "Che, shut up moron. Your excess body heat is doing nothing to appeal to anyone; rather it's stinking up the room." Kaede smirked and turned around.

Up in the front of the room, the math teacher was oblivious to all this. Hiroto frowned. Turning around in his seat he said in a low voice, "Kaede-kun this is school not a gym. You should really put on some sleeves." Kaede rolled his eyes.

"It's an extremely hot day in June, and I'm in a hot classroom. There's no air conditioning or anything entertaining to take my mind off the heat, so I say it's fair enough for me to wear a sleeveless shirt." Kaede smiled innocently at Hiroto.

"Well everyone has to deal with the heat Kaede-kun, so I don't see why you should get any special treatment."

Kaede lifted his casted left arm with a flourish and said, "Hi there~ Poor, injured person with a broken arm in the room. The regular uniform won't be as comfortable as this shirt." Hiroto couldn't argue against that and let it slide. Hiroto turned his back to Kaede. But Kaede wasn't finished. A grin turned up on his face as he whispered, "Also Hiroto-chan, instead of me putting on some sleeve maybe you should take yours off." Hiroto, not turning around, waved Kaede away with his hand. "And don't stop there~" Hiroto did not acknowledge Kaede this time.

From the seat next to Kaede, I watched all this in amusement. Looks like math class isn't going to be too boring.

* * *

><p><strong>Anrya's P.O.V.<strong>

It was lunch time now and the halls bustled with activity as the students of Ichimu Middle school hurried outside or to the cafeteria. After scanning through the wave of students, I found who I was looking for: Kaede. Though I wasn't as close to Kaede as Esa, Jasmine, and Crystal were, I still knew him, and at this very moment, I needed to speak with him. I thought back to what Zero had told us yesterday.

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK*<strong>

_On arriving from school, Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, Rai, Darke, Selina, Ryo, and I searched for Zero to tell him about the news we learned today. We found Zero, along with Ren and Ace, out in the back talking over something. When we approached, Zero and the others looked up at us._

"_Hmhmhmh~ Looks like the whole family came to us," Zero said in slight amusement, "What is it?" Opening my mouth, I told Zero and the others in a rush, about the event that occurred today. By the end, Zero looked a little more than slightly amused._

"_So that's what happened," I said finally. "Um what should we do?" The others silently waited for Zero's reply._

_Zero gazed coolly at me and said, "I don't know. What _should_ you do?"_

_Exasperated and gesturing helplessly, I said, "Well I'm not so sure, which is why I'm asking _you_, Zero." _

_Zero just gazed evenly at me. "Then I'll have to say that I have no answer for you." He then turned his back to me._

_Annoyed, I huffed and grinded my teeth together. "I thought you were supposed to help us Zero," I said pointedly. Behind me, I heard Esa and Crystal protest the same thing._

"_True~" Zero said without turning around, "but that doesn't mean I'm going to baby you. While I'm still here, yes, I will help you in some manner and train and advise you, but after that you're on your own. Hmhmhm~ It's been a year since you and your family had gathered. It's about time _you_ took some responsibility and leadership of your own. When Ren, Ace, and I leave, are you going to let your family be a weak, dependent family with poor leadership?" Zero paused, then let out a chuckle as, I suppose, an amusing thought came to his mind. "Though a weak family would be easy for me to control and manipulate behind the scenes," said Zero a bit sadistically. Even though he hadn't turned, I could tell there was a slight grin on his face by his tone of voice._

_I frowned slightly and said, "That isn't going to happen." Or at least I hoped. Nervously glancing at Zero, I noticed that he had turned around and saw my expression._

"_Hmhmhm~ I'm just kidding Anrya-chan…at least for now~" I gave him a look and he just chuckled again. "Rest assured. I won't do that. A mindless family controlled in the shadows isn't as effective as a strong family with a strong will and purpose~" Zero waved his hand dismissively. "But I'm sure by now you understand my reasoning Anrya-chan?" I nodded grudgingly. "So let's take this a step at a time. Now Anrya-chan, what would _you_ do in this kind of situation…regardless of the mafia world?"_

_I opened my mouth to give out a short 'I don't know' as my answer, but stopped myself as I realized that wouldn't do anything for me, and that it was just pointless. I thought for a minute. "Well first I'd tell Kaede not to tell anyone about the eight pictures of us he saw…"_

_Besides Zero, Ren nodded in approval. "Good move. The less people involved in this situation, the easier it is for you to maneuver."_

_I nodded. "Um I've been wondering, and I think I know the answer to my own question, but…do you think the person looking for us has connections with the mafia?"_

"_Well obviously," Ace answered casually. "Who else would have experience in fighting, and look for you guys? It's no coincidence."_

"_I figured," I said a bit glumly. "Well then, I guess the police won't really be able to do much…" Ace smirked and nodded. "In that case…though I have no experience in this, I think we should track down this person and deal with him personally." Glancing at the expressions of the others, I sighed. "Of course that's just theoretically. I don't know how to pull that off and what to do afterwards."_

"_This is where I can help you," said Zero. "What you said is correct, but like you already know, you won't be able to pull off this tracking when none of you have the information or any idea about this person looking for you. You don't know for sure whether he means harm, or if he has back-up, or his cause for searching for your family. But, since he's the one looking for you guys, it'd be easier to draw _him_ in and retain him that way."_

_I looked at Zero nodded. "I guess that would work since we won't be able to track him…" The gears in my head started to turn. "Maybe somehow we can intentionally spread information about ourselves for the enemy to find, and that way we'll have less trouble drawing him in." I paused a moment and noticed several skeptical looks from Jasmine, Selina, and Crystal. "I'm not too happy to put a big target on my forehead and letting the enemy find me, but at least we have the element of surprise," I said in response to the looks. "They don't know that we know about them and that we plan to take them on…"_

"_Yeah, but the question is what do we do after we draw them in?" Esa said. I remained silent._

_Zero chuckled and said, "Esa-chan makes a good point~ How will you deal with this person?"_

_I bit my lip. "I don't know honestly. If they're not foes, then we'll just question them and part ways, but if they do mean harm…" I glanced away. Indeed what then? The ideal scenario would be to trap the hooded figure and send him to prison, but regular a prison won't do of course…the Vindice would be the safest place to imprison him, but one couldn't just imprison a person without a significant felony in the mafia world… My mind raced as I thought out different plans._

"_Well then," Zero said cheerfully clapping his hands together, "we'll continue to think this through later on. Let's get the things we can do first, then we'll move from there~"_

_We all nodded. "I guess tomorrow I'll speak to Kaede and tell him to keep the picture thing a secret," I said. "Hiroto will keep his mouth shut, so that should be fine, and Kaede's the only other person knowing this, so I just have to get him to keep that a secret." I looked into the distance, eyes unfocusing a little. "We'll start everything else after finals week and the end of school."_

_***END OF FLASHBACK***_

* * *

><p>Up ahead walking besides Naboru was Kaede. They were being jostled by the crowd as they made their way towards the cafeteria lunch line. Quickly darting my way through the crowd, I finally caught up to them and stood in line behind them.<p>

"Oh hey Anrya-chan," Kaede said pleasantly after noticing me.

"Hey," I said with a smile. Then glancing at his arm, I said, "How's the arm?"

Kaede lifted up his casted left arm a shrugged. "It's fine~ Hm, I'm really liking how all the ladies are so concerned for me. Makes me think I should break my arm more often," Kaede said jokingly. I grinned. "Though it's a shame that I broke my left arm," Kaede said. "If I broke my right, then I wouldn't have to write in class~" I shook my head.

"Hey Anrya~" said four voices almost simultaneously behind me. I turned to see Esa, Jasmine, Crystal, and Selina waiting on the lunch line behind me.

"Hey guys," I answered. Then in front of me, I heard Kaede speaking.

"Hey Hiroto-chaaaaaan~" Kaede said in a sing song voice. Hiroto, passing by, snapped his head up sharply and looked at Kaede.

"What," Hiroto asked, icy blue eyes piercing into Kaede's.

Undaunted, Kaede continued on. "My left arm is feeling a bit heavy and tired from the cast, so I'm having a hard time holding my tray," Kaede gave Hiroto the puppy eyes. "Will you hold my tray for me?" Kaede batted his eyelashes.

"No," Hiroto bluntly said.

"Aw why not~? My poor arm is broken, and I can't hold my tray properly."

"Then don't eat," Hiroto said dryly. "Obviously your being a drama queen Kaede. You still have one good arm, so you're more than capable of holding that tray."

Kaede stuck out his bottom lip in a mock-pout. "Hiroto-chaaaan."

Hiroto smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes, and cocked his head to one side. Then seeing that Kaede wouldn't continue on, he turned and left.

I smiled amusedly for a moment.

"So what was _that_ about Kaede?" I heard Esa asked from behind me.

"I was just having a bit of fun," Kaede said. "It's not often you can tease the head of the Disciplinary Committee and get away with it." Jasmine and Selina shook their heads, smiling.

After picking up our lunches, Kaede and Naboru headed off to their table, and the five of us, started outside. Before parting ways though, I got a hold of Kaede.

"Hey Kaede, just saying this to make sure, but don't tell anyone else about the pictures from yesterday, ok?" I looked at Kaede to see if he agreed.

"Sure," he answered. Then turning away, he and Naboru went to their tables.

_Well we got that part done…_ I thought. _Now all we have to do is survive finals week and life._

* * *

><p><strong>And that, concludes chapter 20. So how was it? Review to voice your opinion~!<strong>


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